


Realizations

by sophisticus



Series: Pink Lightning [9]
Category: One Piece
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-02
Updated: 2018-05-18
Packaged: 2019-05-01 02:44:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 19
Words: 25,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14510793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sophisticus/pseuds/sophisticus
Summary: Kitty has been traveling with the Straw Hats for months now, and they've become like family. In particular, she's become close to Zoro, leading to a ton of confusing emotions which she doesn't truly understand. Just as she begins to make sense of them, however, emotional blow after emotional blow begins to rain down. As they say, when it rains, it pours.





	1. Butterflies

**Author's Note:**

> Changed the title from "Archipelago of Realizations" to just "Realizations" because I like it better

The sound of violin drifted below-deck to where Kitty sat, reading a book. She could hear the sound of her friends laughing and chatting as they got to know the newest crew member, a living skeleton named Brook who, despite being a skeleton, somehow retained his boisterous afro. It was only the second most noticeable thing about the musician, but still impressive enough to note. Less impressive was his asking to see her underwear basically the moment she’d woken up, woozy and in pain.

Kitty’s eyes slid from the page she’d not really been paying attention to, to the bed next to her. Zoro lay tucked firmly under the covers and wrapped tightly in bandages and gauze, still thankfully asleep. It had been a full day since they’d set sail from Thriller Bark, and he’d been unconscious the entire time. She wasn’t sure whether to be grateful or anxious that he hadn’t woken since she’d discovered him, alone and drenched in his own blood.

The sound of approaching footsteps pulled her out of her uneasy thoughts, and she looked up in time to see Chopper come in. “How’s he doing?” the doctor asked, reaching to grab his medical kit from where he’d left it by the bed.

“He hasn’t woken up,” Kitty replied. “He’s barely even moved.”

“He’s not supposed to move,” Chopper reminded her. He checked Zoro’s heartbeat with the stethoscope, and seemed satisfied. “He seems like he’s gonna pull through, but he needs a lot of bedrest. I’ve never seen him get so injured in a fight. Are you sure you don’t know exactly how it happened?”

All she could do was nod. The memory of how she’d found him was still fresh in her mind, and it turned her stomach to remember.

“Either way, you should probably get some rest. You’ve been down here all day, have you eaten?” Chopper continued.

God bless that tiny, kind heart of his. “I’m fine, I’m getting plenty of rest by sitting around down here. You did tell me to not do anything exciting for a while to give my ribs a chance to heal,” Kitty reminded him, gesturing to her still-bandaged torso. Just like she’d thought, she had two broken ribs, though Chopper had expertly splinted them and forbid her from any heavy lifting for three weeks. “Babysitting Zoro is just what the doctor ordered.”

“Well, okay,” he said, though he still sounded dubious. “Please tell someone if you need one of us to take over, alright? I’ll be sure to have Sanji bring you some lunch.”

“Thank you, Chopper. You’re the sweetest.” Kitty pulled him close and planted a kiss on his cheek, causing him to blush bright red – or he would have, if he didn’t have fur in the way.

“Oh gosh, that doesn’t make me happy at all, you know,” he giggled.

“Of course not,” she agreed with a laugh. “Go on, go have fun with Brook and the others.”

As Chopper ascended the stairs, her eyes returned to her unconscious friend, and the smile slipped from her face. Zoro was still pale, the usual golden hue of his skin washed out. A frown creased the spot between his brows as she watched, and without thinking her hand reached out to caress his cheek. The crease faded away immediately, and he turned his head into her palm with a sleepy murmur.

Kitty froze as she realized what she’d done, and she jerked her hand back as if she’d been burned. “What the hell was that?” she whispered to herself. Zoro was her friend, just like the rest of them. He was her _closest_ friend. But even close friends didn’t just sensually caress one another like that. Even if one of them was severely wounded, and unconscious, and seemed like he needed a comforting touch. Right?

She had no time to consider exactly why this whole moment baffled her so much. Sanji burst in just then, one arm laden with a tray full of food and the other carrying a tray of drinks, loudly explaining how Chopper had told him that she needed nutrient-rich food to keep her strength up while she “graciously watched over the stupid moss head”.

\---

Zoro ended up only being in bed for another few hours. He woke up shortly after Sanji left, and Kitty was grateful the cook was out of the room when he stirred. Kitty leaned over the bed, and smiled in relief when he finally opened his eyes. “Zoro!” she exclaimed.

“Ugh, fuck,” he grunted, grimacing as he tried to sit up. “Where…how did I get here?”

“You need to stay in bed,” she scolded, pushing him back onto the mattress. “Chopper would have both of our hides if you tried to get up now.”

Zoro swatted her hands away, but relented. “Don’t tell me you dragged me all the way here,” he said, leaning back.

“No. I passed out, I don’t remember what happened after I found you. I woke up here with you.” Kitty sat back in the chair. “Are you hungry? Sanji brought food.”

“Is there booze?”

“There is _food_.”

Kitty offered him a plate of food, which he dug into hungrily. He’d nearly inhaled half of it before he finally slowed down and gave her a serious look. “You’re the one who found me, right?” She nodded. “I need to know. How much did you see?”

Kitty dropped her gaze from his bandaged face to her hands. “I saw Kuma offer you the deal. I saw you experience the tiny bit of Luffy’s pain, then say you wanted to choose the place to handle the rest. I found you after that.” Her hands shook at the memory of him, drenched in blood with that awful expression on his face. She clenched her fists, stilling the tremors.

“You can’t tell Luffy.” Zoro stared her down. “You can’t tell _anyone._ ”

She blinked. “Why not?”

“I don’t want that hanging over his head. Luffy will feel responsible for me being so beat up.” He gestured at his multitude of bandages. “I can’t do that to him. It was _my_ gamble, and it paid off.”

Kitty considered this for a moment, and came to the conclusion that he was right. If it had been _her_ pain and injuries that Zoro had gone through, and had come out this injured, she knew the guilt would eat her alive. As it was, she still wished she had been able to escape the rubble and get to him sooner. But that was an entire other can of worms that she didn’t feel ready to get into.

“I understand,” she said at length. “I promise I won’t tell anybody.”

For the first time in too long, Zoro’s lips curled into a smile. “Thank you,” he said. Kitty’s stomach fluttered as he reached over and clapped a hand onto her shoulder. “I owe you one.”

“Oh, it’s no big deal,” she exclaimed. She leapt to her feet and grabbed her empty plate, turning to take it back upstairs. She felt his eyes following her as she left the room and closed the door behind her. “I’ll be sure to tell Chopper you’re awake, he’ll probably want to do a check-up on you.”

Once she was safely out of sight of the pressure from his stare, she slumped in relief. Maybe it was just being stuck in such a small room for the past several hours, but she was starting to feel seriously weird.


	2. Miscommunication

The entire crew was grateful that the journey from Thriller Bark to Fishman Island would take two weeks. They spent the days getting some much needed rest, as well as repairing the Sunny. It would take a while for all of the injuries to heal, but in the meantime everyone was just happy to not be in danger for several days in a row. Zoro was even eventually allowed out of bed, though Chopper about had an aneurism when he found the swordsman training again with his obnoxiously over-sized weights.

Everything had gone back to normal, for which Kitty was grateful.

Or at least, almost normal. Zoro, who usually would find her and offer to spar, or to share a drink, or even just keep her company during her night watch, seemed to be avoiding her. It wasn’t like he would leave the room when she came in, but he didn’t seek her out for anything they’d usually do. It was a small thing but it really got under her skin.

Ten days after they’d set sail from Thriller Bark, Kitty was up in the crow’s nest, staring absently out at the azure waves. She could hear shouting and laughter far below her as Luffy and Usopp got into some kind of ruckus on the deck. She didn’t mind usually missing out on all that – she’d secluded herself away most of the time on her first pirate ship, so she’d gotten used to it – but she was feeling particularly lonely these days. Hiding away didn’t help, necessarily, but when the person she really wanted to see was avoiding her, it sure didn’t hurt.

Kitty was pulled from her thoughts by someone rapping on the trapdoor entrance. She looked up eagerly, but the smile faded from her face when she realized it was Nami. “Oh, hey,” Kitty said halfheartedly. “Something going on?”

“No, I just wanted to check on you. You’ve seemed kind of down the last few days.” The redhead came over and sat on the bench next to her. “Are you alright? You can talk to us, you know.”

“It’s nothing important,” Kitty said, waving a hand. “I’m just a little moody and didn’t want to inflict it upon the crew.”

Nami gave her a look that clearly said she didn’t believe her. “Talk to Zoro.”

Kitty sputtered. “What? Why?”

“Oh come on, you’re not nearly as sneaky as you think you are. It’s clear to everybody that something’s going on between you too.” She paused. “Well, except to Luffy and Zoro, but Luffy is Luffy and Zoro can be pretty obtuse on these kinds of things.”

Kitty looked away, hating the blush she knew was rising on her face. “There’s nothing going on between me and Zoro.” It was true, they were just friends. Really good friends. And especially recently since Zoro was avoiding her… “He doesn’t even want to be in the same room as me.”

Nami gave a long-suffering sigh. “He’s avoiding you because he thinks you don’t like him.”

Kitty whipped her head back around to give her an incredulous stare. “Why the hell does he think I don’t like him?”

She gestured at the crow’s nest around them. “Because you’d rather seclude yourself up here than join the rest of us, for one.”

“Did he _tell_ you he thinks that?”

“No, not in so many words. But I know him, and he has tells.” Nami shook her head. “He’s an idiot but he’s got some kind of sense of honor. He thinks you don’t want to be around him, so he’s trying to be nice and giving you the space you seem to want.”

Kitty stared down at her hands. “What…I don’t…” She trailed off, lost for words. “But I _do_ like him.”

Nami gave her a knowing look. “Talk to Zoro,” she repeated, standing. “This is a small enough crew and a small enough ship that something like this is too easy to turn into a big mess.” She turned and climbed back down the ladder once more, leaving Kitty alone with her tumultuous thoughts.

\---

In the end, Kitty wasn’t given a chance to make her own decision. The rest of the crew seemed intent on pushing them together at every given opportunity (except for Sanji and Luffy, for obvious reasons), and she had a sneaking suspicion that Nam was behind it. Usopp asked Kitty to deliver a new sword-polish recipe to Zoro. Robin would suddenly remember something she needed to do when Kitty walked in on her and Zoro chatting. Franky even found a copy of “Pick-up Lines for Dummies” which he left on Zoro’s bunk. Kitty did find that one hilarious, though Zoro seemed less than amused at the implication that he needed help with that kind of thing.

The night before they were due to arrive at Fishman Island, most everyone headed to bed early so they’d be rested for whatever bullshit Luffy would inevitably drag them into. Kitty, however, couldn’t sleep, so she grabbed a snack from the kitchen and climbed up into the crow’s nest once more. Up here, it was so calm and quiet, and she could really feel the rocking of the ship. It was soothing, and Kitty was dozing on the cushioned bench before she realized.

She was woken by the creak of the trapdoor opening, and she looked over in time to see Zoro pop up. “Oh,” he said, spotting her. “I didn’t realize you were up here. I’ll leave you alone.”

“Wait,” she called, sitting up. Zoro paused, the trapdoor already halfway shut behind him. “Please stay.”

“Alright.” He looked wary as he climbed inside fully, as if he didn’t know how to be in the same room as her.

Kitty felt the same. Anxiety bloomed inside her, making her fiddle with the hem of her shirt. “I actually wanted to talk to you,” she said, avoiding his stare. In response, he walked over and sat on the other end of the bench. “How come you’ve been avoiding me?”

A slow blink was the only indication that he was surprised by the question. “I thought it’d be obvious,” Zoro answered with a frown. Kitty’s stomach plunged – he _had_ been avoiding her. “ _You’ve_ been avoiding _me_. I thought you don’t want to be around me.”

“That’s not true,” she said softly.

“You pull away any time I touch you. You can hardly look me in the eyes. You find excuses not to sit near me.” He ticked off his points on his fingers. “I don’t know if it’s something I did, but I’m not gonna hang around you when you don’t seem to want it.”

“That’s not true,” Kitty repeated. “Zoro, I…I know I’ve been acting weird, and I’m sorry. It’s definitely nothing you’ve done. You’re my best friend, I don’t want to lose you over a misunderstanding.”

“Then tell me what’s going on with you.” Straight to the point, per usual.

“I don’t _know_.” Not exactly a lie, but not the whole truth. Kitty had the beginnings of a suspicion what was her problem, but it was too much to think about directly. “I’ll get over it, I promise. Just please stop avoiding me, I miss you.”

Zoro’s lips pursed a bit, telling her he didn’t quite believe her, but he nodded anyway. “Deal,” he said.


	3. Arrival

The way the day began, Kitty should’ve known that this whole thing was going to be a disaster. The morning had barely begun before they ran into the massive “sea snake current”, as Nami called it. After a solid two hours of battling the insane currents, they finally arrived at calm seas just before the massive Red Line. The appearance of Camie the mermaid had astonished everybody and delighted Sanji. They’d readily agreed to save her friend Hatchin from the Flying Fish Riders, though that was before they realized that it was the same Hatchin who’d been part of Arlong’s crew from Nami’s past.

Despite that, it was easy enough to rescue him, and soon enough the Straw Hats made their way to the Sabaody Archipelago, where Camie claimed they could equip the Sunny to reach Fishman Island. Kitty had never seen such massive trees, nor so many giant bubbles floating around. After a brief explanation of the World Nobles by Hatchin, as well as a warning about bounty hunters and kidnapping, they all split into different groups. Franky, Usopp, and Sanji stayed on the ship to continue repairs, Nami and Robin headed to the shopping area, while the rest of them headed to find the ship coating specialist. Per Nami’s instruction, Kitty was to keep a close eye on Zoro to keep him from wandering off.

Unsurprisingly, Sabaody’s theme park distracted both Luffy and Camie, and after a brief argument they all went inside. Luffy immediately made a beeline for the wildest of the roller coasters, followed closely by Camie and Hatchin. “Hey, Zoro,” Kitty said, pointing at an ice cream stand. “Wanna get some ice cream?”

“I haven’t got any money.”

“Oh. I’ve only got a few berries.” After a moment of thought, her eyes lit up. “Do you think this place has a casino?”

Zoro’s face split in a grin. “You know, I’ve always liked the way you think, Kitty.”

It was easy enough for Kitty to put her handful of money into a slot machine, and the moment the wheels started spinning, she released a jolt of electricity into the machine. Nothing extravagant, not enough to be really noticeable. But it was enough to trip up the inner workings and display a win on the screen. Cheery music blared from the machine as a ton of coins dropped into the tray. Zoro laughed as Kitty scooped up their winnings. “Hell yeah,” he said. “I need to go out with you more often.”

Kitty blushed a bit, but waved it off with a smile. “I’m glad you think so, but I don’t think the casino owners are happy about us hustling them out of their cash,” she pointed out, nodding at the bouncers already headed their way.

Zoro glanced at them. They could take them easily, he knew, but it was better to not make a scene. “Let’s get out of here, then.”

The two of them slipped out of the casino and disappeared into the crowds. A couple minutes later, they’d bought an ice cream cone each – mint chocolate chip for Kitty, and strawberry for Zoro. They’d barely dug into them before Zoro spotted a couple of patrolling marines, however, and they had to duck into an alleyway to avoid being spotted.

Zoro pulled her into the recesses of a dark doorway. He pressed her back against the door, keeping them both out of sight until the sound of their boot steps faded away. Kitty breathed out a sigh of relief, and smiled shyly up at him.

His mouth dried up a bit as he realized just how close they were. “You got some ice cream on your face,” she said quietly. Zoro held stock-still as she reached up and wiped off the smear of ice cream from his cheek, but it was the sight of her licking the ice cream from her fingertip that set his blood aflame. He finally stepped back, before their close proximity revealed the certain _problem_ he was having below his belt.

“Come on, I think they’re gone,” he said finally. Kitty nodded and followed after him.

“I think we got separated from the others,” she said. “But that’s okay, we have time to enjoy ourselves before we find them again.” Zoro couldn’t stop himself grinning in response to her bright smile, even as her hand grasped his and his heart stuttered in his chest.

Helpless to do anything but follow as Kitty dragged him back into the milling crowds, Zoro wondered when his admiration for her as a crewmate and friend had changed into something else.

\---

Luffy, Camie, and the others were nowhere to be found, and Kitty knew it was useless to ask Zoro to help her find them. One thing he could be trusted to find, however, was any bar within walking distance. The two settled in at a booth with a drink each, content to enjoy the rest of their afternoon there.

Maybe it was because she and Zoro had finally actually talked, or because they’d basically spent the whole day together, or because they were both enjoying a comfortable beer buzz, but Kitty finally felt relaxed around him again. She mentally shook her head at herself, glad that she was back to normal.

Next to her, Zoro finished off his fourth beer. The rest of the crew frequently commented on his high alcohol tolerance, but it always amused him to watch everyone else drink less than half as much but still end up totally blasted. Kitty, in particular, couldn’t handle her liquor. She’d barely put a dent in her second drink and already was flushed and giggly.

“You know, I wish I’d asked you to win me one of those stuffed animals,” she said, her voice a little slurred. “From the ball throwing tent thing.”

“I’d have done it if you’d asked.” He smiled as she seemed to contemplate that very seriously.

“Maybe tomorrow,” Kitty said after a second. “We can go back and do it again.”

“It’ll depend on how long the coating on the Sunny will take.”

“Think they found the coating guy?”

Zoro shrugged. “Who knows?”

Kitty hummed. “Maybe we should head back to the ship after this, meet up with everyone again.”

“It’s on grove one, yeah?”

“ _No._ ” Kitty laughed, bright and free.God, he loved that sound. “Forty one. You’re really hopeless with directions.”

He shook his head, but smiled good-naturedly anyway. “I guess it’s a good thing I have you to lead me around, then,” he teased.

Kitty patted his thigh with another laugh. Zoro jumped a little in surprise at the casual touch, praying her hand wouldn’t go any higher. “I’ve got to go use the bathroom, you stay put, okay?”

“I’ll be here,” he drawled. Kitty winked at him and stood, swaying only a little as she walked off. Zoro’s eyes followed her, admiring the way her skirt swayed around her hips and ass until he realized what he was doing. He shook himself a little – she was hot, sure, but it was rude to ogle someone like that. Sanji, in particular, would have his hide if he knew that she’d given Zoro a hard-on twice in one day, though that was hardly a compelling argument. Kitty was a flirt, but it never had substance behind it – she flirted with everybody except Luffy and Chopper.

Zoro, however, didn’t flirt without intent. He wasn’t going to risk their recently mended friendship over the possibility she wasn’t interested.

Across the room, Kitty reappeared from the restroom. She’d made it halfway across the room when a distant, thunderous _boom_ shook the entire building, shaking dust free from the ceiling. Her eyes and Zoro’s connected automatically, and over the panicked babble they both said, at the same time, “ _Luffy_.”


	4. Escape

They managed to find their way out of the bar amid the panicking patrons. Kitty’s shoulder clipped the door frame painfully, making her grimace and curse her tipsiness. Zoro grabbed her just before she could be pulled away by the swarming crowd, and gestured for her to climb onto his back.

“Go right,” Kitty said into his ear as he took off, heading towards the huge billowing dust cloud that people seemed to be running from. “No, _right_.”

“I am going right!”

“No you’re not, just-”

“Zorooooo! Kittyyyyy!”

They looked up in time to see one of the fish that the Flying Fish Riders used, barreling towards them away from the cloud of dust. On its back, they could see the Rider as well as Usopp, who was waving at them.

“Grab on!” he shouted, holding out his hand as he zoomed close. Zoro reached out and grasped his hand as he whizzed past, and Kitty had to cling tightly to him as they were jerked off their feet.

“What the hell did you do?” Zoro demanded once they were safely sat down.

“It wasn’t me!” Usopp said, looking deeply offended. “This guy bumped a building and it fell over, that’s not my fault.”

“Oh shut up!” the Fish Rider snapped.

“Anyway, I’m glad we finally found you two. We could use you in the fight,” Usopp continued.

“What did Luffy do?” Kitty sighed.

“You joke, but he got us into some deep crap. We were just told via snail that he punched a Celestial Dragon,” Usopp explained.

Kitty’s jaw dropped, but Zoro just sighed heavily. “Of course he did,” he said. “Why?”

“Oh yeah, you guys have been out of the loop! Camie was grabbed by some human trafficker guys and brought to an auction house, and the Celestial Dragon was gonna buy her! Hatchi tried to stop him and the Dragon shot him! Luffy got mad and punched the guy after that.” Usopp shook his head. “Like I said, we could use you in this fight. An admiral and warships are on the way.”

“We’re here!” the Rider called back to them.

“Looks like we’re missing the party,” Zoro said. Sure enough, marines were already swarming around the auction house, fighting Luffy and two others Kitty recognized from their wanted posters: Eustass Kid and Trafalgar Law. It was a little hard to see exactly what was happening, but the three captains appeared to be surrounded by a swirling storm of swords, guns, and…limbs? Kitty thought she saw an arm and a leg fly past them as they flew past and into the auction house, but she shook it off as a trick of the imagination.

“Usopp! Kitty! Zoro!” Below them, Chopper, Nami, Sanji, Brook, Robin, and Franky all waved. Zoro wrapped an arm around Kitty’s waist, grabbed the protesting Usopp by the back of the shirt, and leapt off the flying fish. Kitty was glad to see that Camie was okay, as were the rest of the now-freed slaves, though it seemed the auction house and its guards had taken quite a beating in the fight.

“Kitty! I’m so glad you made it here safely!” Sanji leapt up to her, looking delighted to see her. His bright smile soured, however, at the sight of Zoro’s arm around her. “You stupid moss head, you got lost and Kitty had to save you, didn’t she?”

“Shut up,” Zoro snapped. “We’re here now. What the hell is going on?”

“We stopped the auction and got the slave collar off Camie,” Nami explained. “Luffy went outside with Eustass Kid and Trafalgar Law to fend off the marines.”

“They’re causing one hell of a mess out there,” Kitty said, glancing back as yet another explosion boomed out. “Are we just sitting here waiting for them to clear the way for us?”

“We need to leave,” Usopp said anxiously. “There’s an admiral on the way! There’s no way we can beat someone of that caliber.”

“Let’s go,” Zoro said. They all made their way out into the watery sunlight, including the wounded Hatchi being carried by a silver haired old man, to find absolute chaos. Luffy, Kid, and Law all stood there, cool as cucumbers and not a scratch on them – apart from Luffy, however, who for some reason was shrunk down to the size of a toddler. Honestly, it wasn’t even the weirdest thing she’d seen him do in a fight. Beyond them was a mess of ruined mortar cannons, scattered swords and guns, and wounded marines. Those who could still stand charged forward, aimlessly attacking.

“Time for us to get out of here!” Luffy called to the crew. Everyone leapt forward into the fray, slicing and kicking and punching. The marines were, of course, easy enough to evade, so it took only a couple of minutes to escape the forces with the help of the Flying Fish Riders. Kitty, sat behind Zoro, laughed and leaned forward against him.

“Looks like we’re home free,” she said. He twisted around and grinned at her in response.

The crew managed to get some much-needed rest back in Shakky’s bar, where the silver haired old man revealed himself to be Silvers Rayleigh from the King of the Pirates’ crew. His story was fascinating, sure, but Kitty was grateful for when they all set out.

“We’ll all split up into pairs, then meet at sunset three days from now,” Rayleigh instructed. Kitty examined the Vivre card she’d been given, which even now gave a subtle pull towards the silver haired man. “I’ll have the coating done by then.” With a wave, he set off, disappearing around the bend.

Kitty looked around, but Zoro was one step ahead of her. “We’re going together,” he said gruffly. If she didn’t know better, she’d say that was a hint of a blush across his cheeks.

“Alright,” Kitty agreed with a smile. She could think of worse people to spend three days alone with.

“Let’s go to the amusement park!” Luffy said cheerfully.

“No!” everyone else said, all at once.

A deep _thud_ interrupted them, and as one the crew turned around. Kitty’s heart leapt into her throat at the sight of the man standing there. Looming above them, his wide face absolutely blank beneath that stupid bear ears hat, was none other than the Warlord Bartholemew Kuma, the same man who’d nearly killed them all on Thriller Bark and had left Zoro perilously close to death.


	5. Gone

Kitty breathed heavily, staring at the still-smoking wreck that had been the warlord Kuma. Or at least, they’d thought it was. This appeared to be a robot duplicate, and had been arguably more powerful than Kuma himself. Whatever it had been, it had left them all beat up and exhausted.

It was Zoro, however, who worried her the most. He’d faltered and had been forced to fall back mid-fight, something she had _never_ seen happen. Even now, his face was etched in pain and anger from it, and it left a nauseating taste in her mouth to see.

“We’ve got to find a place to hide,” Sanji was saying when she tuned back in to the conversation. “If they find us now, there’s no way we can fight them off.”

“Let’s just sit here for a few minutes,” Luffy groaned. “I’m too tired to move.”

“No, we have to go now,” Kitty argued. “If this wasn’t the real Kuma, there’s no telling when the real one could show up. Or the admiral. Sanji’s right, we’re screwed if they find us before we’ve had a chance to recuperate.”

“You guys have got a lot of nerve!”

They all stiffened, looking around for the source of the new voice. Behind them came a loud THUD and a billowing dust cloud as something fell from one of the mangrove trees and hit the ground.

“Do you realize how much each of these Pacifistas cost? Each one takes as much money as a warship! How’s this gonna look in my report to that asshole Vegapunk?” The speaker was a large man carrying a broad double ax, but it was the even larger man standing behind him that made Kitty’s blood run cold. Bartholomew Kuma, or another of his lookalikes, stood there staring at them all impassively.

“We’re too worn down. We can’t win another fight. And we haven’t even met the admiral,” Zoro said in a low voice.

“You’re right. We can’t win. Let’s run.” Kitty turned to see Luffy, looking unhappy but determined. “But not all together, we need to split up.” He took a deep breath, then yelled, “Everybody split up! Meet back on the Sunny in three days!”

“Come on!” Zoro barked, gesturing at Kitty. They took off, running as fast as they could. For once, she was grateful for his ability to get them definitely, incredibly lost. So long as they each had a piece of the Vivre card that Rayleigh had given them, they’d be able to find their way back to the Sunny in three days.

A blinding light interrupted her thoughts. A thunderous _boom_ threw her backwards, but the hard landing in the dirt was nothing compared to what the sound of Zoro’s scream did to her.

“Zoro!” The swordsman was crumpled face-down on the ground, swords scattered. She could see the spreading blossom of blood on his back, where a tear in his shirt revealed a horrible burned wound. He was alive – his body trembled with pain as he took in ragged breaths.

“Be careful!” Robin shouted from far behind them. “That man is a Navy admiral!”

Kitty didn’t need to hear that to know who this man was. The billowing coat around his shoulders, with all the tassels and such, told her everything she needed to know. She drew her sword even as the man casually approached.

“Your time’s up, pirate hunter Zoro,” Kizaru said. “Last I checked, you have a 120 million bounty, so I was really expecting more. Your reputation as a swordsman is known far and wide, but one hit and you’re down? That’s a real shame. You must be pretty worn out, hmmm?”

“Shut the hell up,” Kitty spat. “You talk too much.” Fear and rage made her hands tremble, but she tightened her trip on her sword as she pointed it at his face. “How about you take on someone who isn’t half dead from other fights?”

“Kitty,” Zoro grunted. “You can’t take him. Get out of here!”

She hated the agony in his voice and the fear in his eyes when he finally opened them. She hated seeing her indestructible friend hurt so horribly, and be so afraid for her sake. She shut her heart to all of this, and crouched in a fighting stance. Though she might lose this fight, she would at least find a way to get Zoro out of here. She had to.

Kizaru casually lifted his foot, which began to glow with the same bright, obnoxious yellow light that the machine-Kuma had shot from his hands and mouth. Kitty had the sudden horrible image of him stamping that foot down on Zoro’s still prone form, and the fear curdled her blood in her veins. She leapt forward, lightning arcing down the blade of her sword, and slashed at the admiral with a yell. The blade passed through him as if he were a mirage.

“Ahh, you’re a Devil Fruit eater, hmmm? That’s neat. I ate a Devil Fruit too,” Kizaru drawled. “I’m made of light, a logia. You, though…are not.”

Kitty flew backward before she even saw the admiral move to punch her. Agony blossomed in her chest from her broken ribs, and she tasted blood as she slammed into the unforgiving ground. _Fuck_ , she thought dazedly. _Admirals don’t play around. He didn’t even use his power for that hit._

She faintly heard her friends all yelling, and when she opened her eyes, Zoro was gone.

No, he was there – Usopp had grabbed him and managed to sling him onto his back. Kitty felt herself being lifted, and she looked up to find Brook cradling her against his bony chest as he followed the sniper.

“Everybody start running and look after yourselves!” Luffy was yelling again. “We can’t win this one! Get moving!!”

Kitty coughed, grimacing at the shards of pain it sent through her. “Is Zoro…?”

“Usopp has him,” Brook assured her. “We’re getting out of here.”

Yet another explosion interrupted them, and for the second time in as many minutes Kitty was flying painfully through the air again. She saw white as a dull _crack_ echoed in her ears and a bone in her right arm snapped.

Usopp’s wail of terror brought her to her senses. When she finally managed to focus her eyes, she just sat there blinking for a moment – it looked as if there weren’t just one Kuma, but two standing over her friends.

Even from this distance, Kitty could see Zoro’s bared teeth as he incredibly managed to pull himself up into a standing position. She was sure he was remembering, just as she was, exactly everything he’d gone through on Thriller Bark, and just how close to death he’d been afterwards. Injuries that, clearly, still hurt more than he let on and hindered his fighting skills.

Kuma seemed to remember it as well. “Roronoa,” he said, in that deceptively soft voice. “I see you survived.”

“Just barely,” Zoro ground out. He shook, whether from pain or fear, she couldn’t tell. “I have your mercy to thank for that.”

Kuma slipped of one of his gloves, baring the paw prints on his palm. This, then, was the real Bartholomew Kuma. “If you could take a vacation, where is it you would like to go?” he asked.

Zoro wasn’t given a chance to answer. Kuma swiped his bared hand at him, and with a strange popping sound, Zoro winked out of existence.

Kitty gaped at the spot he’d just been. The dust swirled as the air rushed to fill the gap.

He was gone, a spattered bloodstain the only proof he’d been there at all.

The rest of the crew was murmuring, their faces stricken with shock and fear. Kitty’s heartbeat pounded in her ears, drowning out their words, and her vision narrowed till she only saw Kuma.

Zoro was gone.

She stood, even as her right arm dangled uselessly at her side. It was definitely broken, but she didn’t feel pain from it – that would come later.

Gone.

Kitty bent down to pick up her sword with her left hand. She had never been adept at ambidextrous swordplay, but that didn’t matter.

Gone!

She rushed forward, sword raised high. A high, furious scream echoed in her ears, and she barely even registered it as her own voice as she charged the warlord. Kitty ignored her friends shouting and reaching for her, and she put every single ounce of energy into sinking her blade deep into Kuma’s body and pumping him so full of electricity that he’d shit lightbulbs.

He reached up his hand as she approached, and the last thing she saw was that damned paw print before everything turned black with a _pop_.


	6. Realization

Kitty was dead, and on her way to whatever afterlife there was.

Or at least, she was pretty sure. Things had gotten jumbled after Kuma had made her vanish just like he had done to Zoro, but when things straightened out she had found herself soaring through the air in a strange bubble. Far below her, the sunset glimmered red and gold off the waves. If it weren’t for the adrenaline pumping through her veins, she might have found it peaceful.

As the minutes stretched into a solid half hour, the thought occurred that this trip to heaven or hell or what have you, was taking a very long time. She also realized just how much she _hurt_ ; she’d been thrown by explosions, what, three times? Her broken ribs had barely begun to heal before Kizaru landed that punch on her torso, and possibly broken another. On top of that, one or both of the bones in her right forearm had broken. The adrenaline and shock had blocked the pain, but once she calmed down, the full brunt of her injuries began hitting her.

Kitty stared up at the rapidly darkening sky, and came to two conclusions: first, she wasn’t dead, if the amount of pain she was in was anything to judge by. Two, if she wasn’t dead, then it was logical to assume that Zoro was alive as well.

The image popped into her head of him crumpled on the ground, bleeding and begging her to run. _Alive._ Zoro was wounded, but he was _alive._

Tears welled up, and before she could stop it she was sobbing, her tears leaving salty tracks in the dirt on her cheeks as she shook from pain and sheer overwhelming emotion. Kitty was thankful when she slipped into an uneasy sleep under the night’s first twinkling stars.

\---

Waking up from her disturbing dreams was so much more chaotic than Kitty had expected or hoped. First to register was the overwhelming _noise_ – every other second a deafening _crack_ of thunder sounded, all over a constant background rumble of more distant lightning strikes. Second was the light and the smell – blinding violet flashes that made her dizzy even through closed eyelids, along with the smell of hot metal and burned ozone. She squinted blearily as she tried to get a grasp of her surroundings.

A rock jabbed painfully into the small of her back as she shifted, and Kitty realized with a jolt that she was laying on solid ground – at some point, she’d stopped flying high in the sky and had landed on an island. She made to sit up, but lay back with a groan. Her right arm felt hot and swollen, and shards of white hot agony shot up it with every beat of her heart. On top of it, her head felt stuffed full of warm cotton, and it was too hard to hold onto any one train of thought. Faintly, she thought she heard the babble of unfamiliar voices, but the pull of unconsciousness was too strong. Kitty allowed the suffocating dark to draw her in once more.

\---

When Kitty woke up once more, it was mercifully quiet and dark. Her head felt light, as if she’d float away at the barest breath of wind, so she laid as still as she could. She faded in and out of consciousness for a bit, until the creak of an opening door made her actually crack an eyelid open.

She’d been laid on a narrow cot in a dark room. Across from her, the heavy door had cracked open, and a young woman peeked inside. “Oh, you’re awake!” she said, coming inside. In her hands, she carried a tray of food. The smell of it wafted over, and Kitty’s stomach snarled in response.

“Where am I?” Her voice was hoarse, and her mouth felt dry as sandpaper.

The woman set the tray aside and helped Kitty sit upright, propping her up on her pillow. As she did so, Kitty realized her right arm had been splinted and tightly bound, stabilizing the broken bone. “You’re on Fulgur, on the Grand Line,” she answered. “We found you outside, injured and unconscious. We brought you inside so the storm wouldn’t kill you.”

Kitty squinted, thinking back. She remembered realizing she was on solid land, and hearing lots of noise, but it was all so blurry. “Storm?”

“This island is always storming. On worse days, we can see over a thousand lightning strikes a minute. We use arrays to catch the lightning and transform it into electrical energy, which we sell to other islands.” The woman set the tray on Kitty’s lap, and she dug in with her left hand. “I’m Hawke, by the way.”

“I’m Kitty. Thank you for helping me.” A piece of food fell from her fork, and it took her a second to stab it again. “Please, how far is it to the Sabaody Archipelago? It’s very important that I get back.”

Hawke frowned. “I’m not sure, but…that’s actually a problem.”

Kitty paused mid-bite. “What do you mean?”

“You destroyed one of our electrical arrays. The higher-ups want compensation for it,” she explained awkwardly.

“But I don’t have any money,” Kitty said, dismayed. Hawke gave a sympathetic grimace.

“They’re the ones in charge here,” Hawke explained. “They’re not gonna let you go anywhere until they get their due.”

“So I’m a prisoner?” she demanded.

Hawke sighed. “For lack of a better word. I’m sorry.” She stood, taking the now empty tray. “I’ll let them know you’re awake, I’m sure one of them will come in to discuss it with you in more detail.”

Kitty stared after her as she shut the heavy door behind her, and she heard the sound of a lock sliding into place. Prisoner, indeed. Wounded as she was, she didn’t think she could escape. Now that she thought about it, her bag and sword were nowhere in sight. The sword she would abandon if she had to, even though it had been a gift from Ace. But the bag had the Vivre card that Rayleigh had given her. If she recovered anything before escaping this island, it had to be that card.

Her thoughts returned to her crew. She’d been the second to be swiped away by Kuma, so she hadn’t seen what happened to the others, but it was logical to assume the same thing had happened to everybody else. Zoro, at least, definitely had been sent flying just like she had. The idea that he was alive somewhere made tears of relief prick at her eyes, and she scrubbed them away with a sniffle. He was one of the most stubborn people she’d ever met, second only to Luffy. He would make his way back to Sabaody, somehow. She just had to make it back as well.

Kitty thought back to the couple of hours she’d spent with him in the bar before all of it had gone to shit. In her mind’s eye she saw his easy smile, and the sound of his delighted laugh echoed in her ears. Warmth blossomed in her chest, and she leaned back against the headboard with a soft smile of her own.

The realization hit her like a hammer blow to the back of the head. Kitty’s jaw slackened, and she stared at the far wall as everything clicked into place for her.

Oh. _Oh._

Every casual touch, every shy smile, every shared laugh. It all made so much sense now.

Kitty had fallen in love with Zoro, and hadn’t even realized it till it was too late to do anything about it.


	7. Trapped

“You _can’t_ be serious.”

Kitty stared down the older woman, torn between disbelief and seething anger. The head of this island, a blonde woman who introduced herself as Meredith, had come to her room to discuss the damages with her. When Kitty had landed after Kuma sent her flying, she’d knocked into one of the electrical arrays responsible for catching lightning and sending it into the processing generators, and had apparently done considerable damage. Some of the workers had calculated the cost to repair it, and Meredith now expected her to compensate it.

“I don’t have sixteen million berries,” Kitty protested. “You expect someone to carry around that kind of money on them?”

“Actually, it’s sixteen million, seven hundred and five thousand, five hundred and two berries,” Meredith corrected, consulting the clipboard she carried. Kitty bit her tongue to stop herself from saying something she’d regret; her own bounty was much higher than that, but if these people knew about it, she would be turned in to the government. “On top of that, for every hour that the electrical array is down, our company loses one hundred and eighteen billion, five hundred and twenty one million, three hundred and sixty thousand berries. Be grateful that we’re not asking you to compensate our profits loss, for which there are already over sixty hours’ worth accumulated.”

Kitty swore. On one hand, that was a _lot_ of money. On the other hand, she’d really been asleep for that long? “If you make so much money off of each pole _per_ _hour_ , why don’t you use the profit from the other poles to cover it?”

Meredith gave a nasty smile. “Because the damage isn’t our fault. It’s yours.” She consulted her clipboard again, looking bored once more. “However, we anticipated that you would be unable to pay this sum, so my colleagues and I have come to an agreement. If you are able to repair said electrical array, we’ll call the debt even. If you cannot do that, then you’ll have to work here at the plant to pay the debt off.”

“I can’t repair anything, I don’t know a thing about electrical engineering. Not to mention I have a broken arm,” Kitty said hotly. “It’ll be months before I’m back to normal.”

“For which naturally we cannot afford to wait.” Meredith set the clipboard down on the tiny bedside table with a _clack_. “So it has been decided that our engineers will repair the array, to avoid any further delay. Repairs are already underway. Once you have healed, you will work here to pay off the debt. Only after every berry has been paid back will you be allowed to leave.”

“If you’ve already decided everything, why did you come in here acting like I had a choice in the matter!?”

“To impress upon you the seriousness of what you’ve done.” Meredith stood and headed towards the door without as much as a glance back. “That clipboard contains all the fine details, if you wish to know more. I wish you a speedy recovery, and look forward to working with you.”

Kitty grabbed the clipboard and hurled it after the woman.  The door had barely shut when the clipboard connected with the heavy wood, sending the papers flying everywhere. Breathing heavily, she leaned back against the headboard of the bed, muttering vicious insults below her breath and wishing her furious glare could melt the lock that slid into place behind the door. Losing her temper did her no good, but it sure _felt_ good after the monotony of being stuck in this dark room with only her thoughts for company.

Guilt washed over her again as she thought about her revelation she’d had last night. Kitty had fallen in love with Zoro, there was no denying it, but at the same time...part of her heart still belonged to Ace.

When she’d finally reunited with him in Alabasta, she’d been so happy to see him alive and well. He hadn’t been able to stay longer than a couple of hours, but they’d gotten caught up during that short time. Ace had recounted some of his more exciting adventures, and Kitty had told him about Luffy helping her break her parents out of jail. However, when Kitty had asked to rejoin his crew, Ace had looked somber.

“I’m not a captain anymore,” he’d explained. “I ended up joining Whitebeard’s crew. I believe in him and I’m gonna help make him king of the pirates. I’m sure he’d let you join too, I’ve told him plenty about you.”

In the end, Kitty had to decline. It just wouldn’t have been the same, and she’d become so comfortable with the Straw Hats. Ace might believe in Whitebeard, but Kitty had come to believe in Luffy. It made her sad, but she’d accepted that she and Ace would probably not be on the same crew ever again, which made it easier for her to officially join Luffy’s crew afterwards.

Unfortunately, that didn’t make her current situation any easier. She and Ace had never really had a discussion where they agreed to be exclusive, or discussed what the future might hold for them. And yet…suddenly realizing that her affection for Zoro wasn’t just platonic threw everything out of whack. She knew it wasn’t any fault of her own, but she felt guilty anyway.

Kitty shook her head, pulling herself out of the downward spiral of thoughts. She didn’t have time for this. She couldn’t afford to get roped into servitude here, she had to find her way back to Sabaody and reunite with her crew. She wasn’t exactly a skilled navigator, certainly not on Nami’s level, but she had some sense. Plus, with Rayleigh’s Vivre card, all she really had to do was point a boat in the right direction and go. She’d been here for two and a half days, she couldn’t afford to delay any longer.

Well, that settled it. Kitty lifted her left hand and idly watched a spark of electricity arc between her fingers. They hadn’t bound her with sea prism stone, so they likely didn’t realize she was a Devil Fruit eater. She could use that to her advantage. All she had to do was find her stuff and steal a boat, and she’d be off this island.

Kitty slid out of bed, groaning at the ache of her stiff muscles. “Ah, damn,” she grunted. She stretched a little and felt a series of satisfying cracks and pops go down her spine and hips. Lying in bed for two days would do that to you, she supposed. She went over to the door and laid her palm on the handle, and pushed a small, experimental jolt of electricity into it. Whatever material it was made of, however, didn’t seem to transfer electricity very well, so she gave up on that.

She stared at the door, thinking hard. It was hard to tell what kind of lock was on the other side, though she assumed it would be focused around the door handle like most locks. Which meant the hinges would be the weak spot.

Kitty turned her attention to the hinges. They seemed to be made of the same metal as the handle, but were thinner. If the wood of the door got burned, the smoke might alert someone, so she had to be careful. With her left hand, she held out two fingers and arced electricity between them. The arc intensified, until she had to squint from the brightness. “Come on, please work,” she breathed, as she touched her fingers to the hinges.

Sparks rained down at the contact, and she swore as they skittered across the back of her hand. It took lots of little adjustments, as well as forcing the power level further than she usually did, but she finally burned all the way through all three hinges. Kitty coughed away the fumes that had arisen from the melted metal, and gave the door an experimental push. It creaked and hung lopsided, but it opened. Kitty allowed herself a thin smile, and slipped out into the dim hallway.


	8. Attempt

This place was a goddamn maze. Kitty had been wandering around for nearly an hour and had yet to find anything that looked like an exit, nor had she found her stuff. Several times, she’d had to duck behind a corner or a doorway to avoid getting caught. “Ah, damn,” Kitty sighed. “I couldn’t be more lost if Zoro were leading me around.”

Kitty peeked around a corner, and froze when she saw someone walking towards her. However, she recognized Hawke, the woman who’d been so sympathetic to her yesterday. An idea rose up in her mind, and Kitty smiled grimly.

Hawke was absorbed in some paperwork and didn’t notice her until it was too late. Kitty grabbed the taller woman by the collar and slammed her against the wall.

“Ow! Shit, what the hell-” Hawke froze when she realized what had happened. “You! How did you get out of your room?”

“You’re going to help me get out of here,” Kitty said bluntly. “I have places to be and I can’t waste time working here.”

“I can’t go against Meredith,” Hawke argued. “I’ve got good job security here, I can’t throw that away.”

“Then we won’t get caught. You know where my stuff is, don’t you? Take me to it, and point me to the docks. After that, you can go back to whatever it is you do here.” Kitty stepped back, giving her space to breathe. “I need you to do this and I don’t have time to argue about it.”

Still, Hawke hesitated. “If we get caught-”

“We won’t. You know this place, right? Take me to where they’ve put my stuff.”

“…alright.” Hawke started down the hallway again. “It’s this way, in the security room. I’ll go in and get your stuff, while you hide out here. If they ask why, I’ll make something up.”

“I’m trusting you, here,” Kitty said quietly.

“I know. I’m trusting you not to get us caught,” Hawke answered. “It’s around here. Stay put, I’ll be back in a second.”

Kitty sank back into the shadows as Hawke went into the security room. If Hawke was going to betray her, this would be the moment. However, as she eavesdropped on the room, she made no mention of the pirate hiding outside the door.

“Where are our guest’s things? I was asked to retrieve them for examination,” Hawke said.

“We’ve already looked through the bag, there’s nothing special in there,” someone else answered. “Who ordered the examination?”

“Meredith, of course. I don’t know why, but I’m not gonna argue with her over it,” Hawke sighed. “I don’t want to get on her bad side, you know?”

“Yeah, I get you. Sucks that you have to answer directly to her. It’s all over in the locker over there, 3B.” There was the jangle of keys, and the sound of a metal door opening.

“Ah, thank you. I’ll bring it back when I’m done. Say, have you got today’s newspaper?”

“Yeah, here.”

Hawke reappeared around the corner, carrying Kitty’s bag and sword. “You’re the best,” Kitty exclaimed, grabbing her things. “Now I just have to get to the docks.”

“They’re this way, I’ll show you.”

The two women ran down the hall. As they went, Kitty fumbled through her bag until she found the scrap of paper with Rayleigh’s name written on it. She breathed a sigh of relief as the paper gave a subtle tug. “Thank you,” she said. “I really owe you one.”

“Make sure we don’t get caught, and we’re even,” Hawke replied, gesturing with the newspaper. Kitty’s eyes landed on a familiar name on the newspaper, and her hand shot out to grab it. “What, is something wrong?”

Kitty slowed to a halt as she read the article, and her face turned pale. “What is this?” she whispered. “That can’t be right.”

Hawke peered over her shoulder at the article. “Oh yeah, I heard about that the other day. They say the entire Navy is stir-crazy over Fire-Fist Ace’s execution in a few days, they’ve got the admirals headed to Marineford as well as the warlords.”

“Execution?” Kitty swayed a bit, and had to lean against a wall. “I knew he was in trouble, but they’re gonna execute him?”

“Hey, are you alright? You look horrible,” Hawke said, laying a hand on her shoulder. Kitty shook her hand off, refusing to meet her concerned stare.

“We have to go. _Now_.”

“Alright. This way.”

They hurried down the long hallways, ducking around the occasional plant worker walking around. They’d not made much progress, however, before an alarm blared out.

“Shit, looks like they’ve realized you escaped,” Hawke said, glancing behind them. They could hear the faint sound of babbling voices, as no doubt the workers began their search. Kitty broke into a run, with Hawke hot on her heels.

“Hey, stop!”

Kitty swore; they’d caught up with them. She didn’t hesitate to shove Hawke in the first doorway they came across. “Hide!” she hissed. “They’ll realize you helped me.”

Kitty bolted off again. Hawke had gotten her close to the exit, if she could just find it, then she’d be home free. She skidded around a corner, almost losing her footing before she was off again.

From behind her came the explosive sound of gunfire, echoing off the stone walls. At the same time, hot pain erupted in the back of her leg, and she stumbled and fell.

“Fuck,” she spat. Kitty touched the back of her thigh, and grimaced as she found hot, sticky blood leaking out. They’d shot her! A wave of nausea washed over her, and she felt her strength flagging. Did they have sea prism stone bullets?

The clacking of boots upon the stone came closer, and Kitty looked up to find Meredith looming above her. “Well, that certainly was an interesting adventure,” she said calmly. “Unfortunately, it seems to be at an end.

Kitty glared at the woman. “Please,” she ground out. “I can’t stay here. I have to go save my friend.”

It ground against her pride to beg, but that was nothing compared to Meredith’s smirk. “I don’t care,” she said dismissively. To one of her subordinates, she said, “take her back to her room and see that her wound is treated. Be sure to give her a sea prism stone implant before you remove the bullet, however.”

Without another word, Kitty was dragged away, hating every single step that took her further away from Ace.


	9. Helpless

When Kitty had first woken up on Fulgur, it had been six days before the date set for Ace’s execution. Following her re-capture and medical treatment, it was now barely a day and a half before the execution. She’d been ordered to stay in bed to allow her various wounds to heal, especially the bullet wound in her leg, but anxiety and fury pushed her to pace back and forth. It hurt like hell, but she kept limping along, searching for anything to keep her mind off of the image of Ace in chains.

Kitty looked up at the sound of the lock sliding back, and found herself face to face with Hawke once more. “You should be in bed,” she scolded, though her words lacked any bite. She brought over a tray of food and set it on the bedside table. “Come on, come sit down.”

“I can’t,” Kitty growled. “Ace is going to _die_ , and I can’t do anything about it.”

“How do you know Ace?” Hawke asked. When Kitty was silent, she sat on the bed. “Please, sit down.”

After a moment, Kitty did as she was asked. “I used to be on Ace’s crew,” she said softly. “I was his vice-captain for almost two years. We were…very close.”

“I see.”

“You don’t seem surprised to hear that I’m a pirate,” Kitty said warily. Hawke gave a quiet laugh.

“I already knew that,” she said. “I recognized you from your wanted poster.”

“And you didn’t turn me in?”

Hawke leaned back. “The government would say that the Straw Hat pirates are an awful menace, especially after Enies Lobby and Sabaody, but everything I’ve seen says you all aren’t so bad as they’d like us to think. I decided to give you the benefit of the doubt.”

Kitty raised an eyebrow. “Do you still think that, after I threatened you and dragged you into my escape plan?”

“Actually, I do. You managed to keep me from being caught along with you. They didn’t suspect me at all,” Hawke said. “I owe you one. I can’t get you your stuff again, or help you escape, but I think I can get you a mini video transponder snail. I know it’s not much, but it’ll let you watch the execution if you want.”

Kitty’s gaze dropped to her clenched fists. “I…I don’t…” She shook her head. “Marineford is too far away for me to get to in time, there’s nothing else anybody can do. You’re very kind…I’ll take the snail. I don’t know if I’ll watch. But I’ll take it.”

“I’ll bring it tomorrow when I bring you your lunch,” Hawke said. “For what it’s worth…I’m sorry.”

\---

Kitty lay curled on the bed, the tiny video transponder snail cupped in her hands. Projected on the screen, she watched the absolute chaos erupting at Marineford. Like everyone had predicted, Whitebeard had shown up to save Ace, and nothing less than a war had erupted. When Luffy had supposedly fallen out of the sky, she’d cheered aloud. How he had managed to get from Sabaody all the way to Marineford in just a week, she didn’t know, but in the moment she didn’t care. Kitty watched intently as he charged towards the scaffold where Ace was chained.

It was hard to see with all the dust flying everywhere and all the writhing bodies, but it looked like Luffy was kicking some serious ass at Whitebeard’s side. It was hardly surprising, knowing her captain as she did, but it warmed her heart to see him putting everything on the line for Ace. That, with the backup of the entire Whitebeard crew, eased some of her fears – but not all.

Even as she watched, a massive length of stone ripped itself up from the ground and flipped up to make a path to the scaffold. Kitty held her breath as Luffy sprinted up the walkway, and finally, _finally_ , landed on the scaffold with Ace. She couldn’t see his expression from so far away, but she knew exactly how he’d look.

Her relief was short-lived. Behind her current and ex-captains, Fleet Admiral Sengoku finally showed his devil fruit powers, transforming into a giant golden Buddha and striking his giant fist down upon them. The scaffold collapsed under the blow, and Kitty watched anxiously as Ace, Luffy, the fleet admiral, and a couple of soldiers fell towards the plaza below. The camera shook and wobbled as a massive explosion erupted around them, blotting out the weak sunlight with a huge cloud of smoke and ash.

“No,” Kitty whispered. “He can’t have died like that.”

It was several long seconds before anything happened. Every pirate and marine watched with bated breath, waiting to see what would happen next. Kitty could swear that for those three longest seconds of her life, her heart stopped beating.

A blaze of fire burst forth out of the column of smoke, revealing a flame-lined hollow. Inside it, dirty and bruised but alive and _free_ , was Ace, holding up Luffy. Kitty clasped a hand over her mouth as tears of relief and joy welled up. Luffy had done it, he’d saved Ace!

Ace was too far from the camera for her to hear what he was saying to Luffy, but the exasperated grin on his face said more than words ever could. The marines closest to them all collectively panicked as Ace let loose, filling the entire plaza with raging hellfire. Kitty’s chest swelled with pride and affection for both brothers as she watched them battle their way back out of the marine forces, and back towards the bay with Whitebeard’s ship. Even as Whitebeard unleashed his monstrous power and wrecked Marineford down to its foundation, even as yet another of the Admirals gave chase, they didn’t stop running.

At least, until Ace skidded to a halt for no discernable reason. Kitty frowned, trying to see what was happening. The camera angle was just too off to see what exactly the Admiral behind Ace was doing, too far away to hear what was being said, but neither of them seemed to be moving. She could, however, see the fury that twisted his handsome features before he turned around. The flames flickering across his skin said enough – they were fluttery and erratic like they got whenever Ace was close to losing control.

Whatever they were saying, Akainu and Ace were having a heated argument, until they finally launched at each other. An explosion of flame and lava burst forward, flinging Ace away. Kitty gasped – she’d never seen him be thrown like that. This was not going well; they’d been _so close_ to escaping until Ace had jumped into a fight with this Admiral.

Akainu didn’t give him a chance to get up. Instead of attacking Ace again, he leapt at Luffy, his magma-fist outstretched. Kitty didn’t even have time to cry out a warning she knew Luffy would never hear.

Luffy flinched away from the admiral’s attack, but froze when he saw the same thing that caused Kitty’s heart to stop dead in her chest. Ace had thrown himself between Akainu and Luffy, and taken the blow meant for his brother. The Admiral’s fist protruded from Ace’s chest, ringed with blood and flames.

Kitty didn’t move, didn’t blink, didn’t even breathe as she stared at the impossible thing on the tiny screen in her palm. It just wasn’t possible. Ace was a logia type, a physical blow like that shouldn’t have been able to touch him, let alone hurt him.

The screen blurred, and she realized tears were flowing freely, soaking the sheet beneath her. Her breath returned in a ragged gasp. Nausea welled up as she struggled to see past her tears, but she faintly saw Luffy catch him as Ace fell to his knees.

Kitty couldn’t hear anything over the sound of her heartbeat pounding in her ears and her own labored breathing, but she could see both brothers trembling as Luffy clutched his older brother close, blood soaking them both. She couldn’t tear her eyes away from the horrific gap in Ace’s torso, right in the center of his tattoo of Whitebeard’s flag.

Fighting erupted around the two brothers, but it was as if they were in their own world. It was hard to catch, but the camera picked up some of Luffy’s shouting. The terror and fury in his voice tore at Kitty’s heart. How long they sat there, clinging to one another, she didn’t know. She could, however, see the peaceful smile that overtook Ace’s face as he finally went limp in Luffy’s arms, and slumped to the ground into the pool of his own blood.

Kitty’s entire body shook with sobs and great heaving breaths. Dead. Ace was dead, and she’d been unable to do a damn thing. Even Luffy and Whitebeard together hadn’t been able to pull it off. All of that hope, all of that relief at seeing Ace released from his chains, had been punched straight through. Luffy’s scream of grief and rage cut through her fog of pain, but only for a moment before she sunk back down into the dark abyss.


	10. Resolution

Kitty lay there, half conscious, for a long time before she heard the door creak open. There was a rustling, then the mattress dipped down as someone sat next to her. “Oh, Kitty, I’m so sorry…”

Hawke. Kitty could smell food that she must have brought in, but it curdled her stomach to think about eating. Hawke brushed strands of hair away from Kitty’s tear-streaked face, her hands wonderfully cool on her hot skin. “I heard what happened to Ace,” Hawke said quietly.

A quiet whine slipped from Kitty’s lips. She thought she’d cried every tear she could earlier, but even now hot tears welled up and slipped down her cheeks. Kitty had spent the last who knows how many hours deep in semi consciousness, which had protected her from the brunt of her pain, but being finally forced to face it was just too much. She felt Hawke lay down next to her and pull her into a gentle embrace. Kitty clung to her, not caring how pathetic she must’ve sounded as a fresh wave of sobs washed over her.

\---

“Kitty, you have to eat.”

It had been three days since news of Ace and Whitebeard’s deaths had shaken the world to its core. Kitty had lain in bed, refusing to move or eat or even speak. Hawke stayed with her the entire time, leaving only to relieve herself or to get more food to entice Kitty.

“Your injuries won’t heal right if you don’t eat something,” Hawke chastised her. “At least drink some water.”

Kitty stared up at her, blinking blearily. “Why?” she croaked.

Hawke scowled. She’d been sympathetic and understanding this entire time, but Kitty could tell that even her expansive patience was wearing thin. “You’re going to get sick at this rate,” she said. “I understand you’ve gone through one hell of a loss. I sympathize, I really do. But you can’t let it destroy you like this. What would your captain say?”

Kitty dropped her gaze. She was ashamed to admit it, but beyond what she’d initially seen, she hadn’t considered how this must be affecting Luffy. She’d watched Ace die, but Luffy had held him in his arms, had felt his blood soaking his clothes. As for what he’d say about Kitty’s refusal to eat…she knew exactly what he’d say.

Hawke reached over to the bedside table and grabbed the newspaper. “Your captain made it into the paper again,” she said. Kitty dragged herself upright, grimacing at how stiff her muscles had become, and took the newspaper from Hawke’s outstretched hand.

Following the War of the Best, it seemed Luffy had vanished, severely wounded and comatose. Now, he had reappeared back in Marineford of all places. Tears of relief pricked at the corners of her eyes, and she smiled for the first time in days. “Luffy,” she whispered. “I knew you’d be alright.” Her eyes skimmed over the article, but her gaze caught on the picture of Luffy. He was bandaged from head to toe, sure, but his right arm had been left clear to reveal what looked like a tattoo – 3D2Y, with the 3D crossed out. Her first thought was that it looked an awful lot like Ace’s arm tattoo, but something about it bothered her.

Hawke was talking, more of the aimless chatter she’d adopted during Kitty’s three days of silence, but Kitty didn’t hear a word she said as Luffy’s message clicked in her brain. The agreement had been to meet on the Sunny in Sabaody in three days, but obviously the plan had changed. As clear if he’d spoken the words aloud, she understood his message: the plan to meet in three days was shot. Instead, they’d meet at Sabaody in two years. In the meantime, they would all train and grow stronger, so they could survive the New World when they finally made it.

“I understand, captain,” Kitty murmured. “Message received. See you in two years.”

Hawke froze mid-sentence as Kitty reached over and grabbed a bread roll from the lunch tray and tore into it. “I’m glad you’re eating, don’t get me wrong, but what caused the change of heart?” she asked.

“I’ve got to get stronger,” Kitty mumbled around her mouthful of food. She dug into the greens on the plate. “The plan has changed. In the meantime I have to train. I couldn’t do anything in Sabaody for Zoro, and I couldn’t even escape here in time to get to Marineford for Ace. That has to change.”

Hawke squinted a bit, but smiled anyway. “I don’t quite follow, but I’m glad you’re eating, at least.”

“How long do you think it’ll be until I’m healed enough to work?” Kitty asked.

“Umm. Maybe two months?” Hawke guessed. “And even after that, you’ll need time to get your mobility back to normal, and probably physical therapy – wait a minute. Work? I thought you said you couldn’t afford to get stuck here.”

“Like I said, the plan has changed.” Kitty took a deep swig from the glass of water. “I’ve suddenly got some time to kill. I might as well get myself back to fighting shape, and then work my ass off to improve. With my particular skillset, what better place to be stuck for two years than a lightning island?”

“Skillset? What do you mean?”

Kitty raised her hand to show the sparks of electricity that she could summon at will, but remembered at the last minute the sea prism stone pellet they’d embedded in her leg. “I’m sure they mentioned it to you at some point, but I’m a Devil Fruit eater. That’s how I was able to escape from this room in the first place. I have lightning powers. I don’t know anything about electrical engineering, but I’m sure there aren’t much better places for me to train for two years.”

Hawke nodded. “That makes sense.”

“Will you help me?”

Hawke smiled at the request, and reached out her hand. Kitty clasped it, and returned the smile. “You know it.”


	11. Reunion

Sabaody sure had changed in the past two years. Where previously it had been more of a leisure and tourist kind of place, now it was filled with rough-looking types. Including, from what she could tell, a group of guys who looked vaguely like the Straw Hat crew that were imitating them – and poorly too. Her own imitator was a grouchy looking woman with hair dyed an awful neon pink, which made her laugh more than anything.

According to Shakky, Kitty had been the second to last to arrive. She wasn’t hung up on being so late, relatively, but she was floored to learn that Zoro of all people had been first. She’d laughed aloud when Shakky had recited Zoro’s words: “I guess they all got lost.”

Two years was a long time by most standards, and it had been enough time for her to come to some kind of acceptance of Ace’s death, as well as begin picking at the tangled mess that was her guilt and anxiety over developing feelings for Zoro while still having feelings for Ace. She knew Ace never would’ve begrudged her any happiness, and he would want her to do whatever made her happiest, but that hadn’t made it any easier for her.

Kitty shook the heavy thoughts from her mind. This was a day for reunions, not to get bogged down in the past. She glanced down at the Vivre card in her hand, and it tugged forward. She still had a bit to go, but after two long years, she was finally almost reunited with her crew.

Another few minutes of walking, and the Sunny finally came into view. Kitty’s heart swelled with happiness at the sight of the familiar Jolly Roger painted on the sail, and the lion figurehead. From the deck, she could hear excited chattering of her friends, and without thinking she broke into a run.

“Woooaaah!” Franky’s delighted yell echoed over the water, and she could see him leaning over the railing. Or at least, it looked like him – though he’d done some monstrous upgrades to his arms and chest, and had shaved his head. Man, he did not look good bald. “Who’s that stunning vision headed our way!?”

“Franky!” Kitty called, waving.

“Kitty!” Now Usopp, Nami, Robin, and Brook had joined the cyborg, and were all shouting and waving. Kitty’s face split in a wide grin at the sight of her friends, and after another second she was up on the deck.

“Oh my god, Nami, your _hair_! You too, Usopp!” Kitty hugged them all in turn.

“I can’t believe you’re actually wearing pants now,” Franky said. It was true, she’d ditched her usual skirt and sandals for some more practical pants and boots. Loose flowy fabric wasn’t the most sensible thing to wear in an industrial environment, where it could get caught in machinery or dip in a container of dangerous chemicals.

“You’re one to talk! I see you’re as half-nude as ever,” Kitty teased, gesturing to Franky’s underwear.

He struck a pose. “If you’ve got it, show it off.”

“Kitty, you’re looking as lovely as ever!” Brook said, waltzing over to her. “I know it’s a bit sudden to ask, but could you perhaps show me your panties?”

“You know, I can’t believe I actually missed you asking that,” Kitty said dryly.

“Does that mean you’ll show me?”

“No.” Kitty looked around. Most of her friends were here, true, but… “Where’s everyone else? Sanji, Luffy, Chopper…Zoro?”

“Luffy got here earlier today, and just has to actually get to the ship. Sanji is bringing Zoro here. Chopper went to go find them all. It shouldn’t be too much longer,” Nami said, ticking off her fingers as she spoke.

“Well, if we have a bit of time to kill, I’m gonna go put my stuff away.” Kitty went inside, heading downstairs to the women’s quarters.

\---

“Heeeeeey!”

The Sunny had finally come into view, and Zoro could see the rest of the crew on the deck far below them. They all waved up at them as the giant bird that Zoro, Chopper, Luffy, and Sanji rode glided close to the ship. Perched on his shoulder, Chopper called, “Told you I would find ‘em!”

They touched down, and smiles and laughs and not a few tears abounded as everyone was finally reunited. Zoro was as happy as anybody to be back, he really was, but the smile slipped from his face as his eye scanned over everyone, noticing the one missing face.

“Where’s-”

His question was interrupted by one of the doors on the ship opening. In the doorway stood none other than Kitty, looking as stunning as he’d ever seen her. His breath caught as he sized her up – her cotton candy pink hair was longer and unbound, and she’d changed her wardrobe drastically – though he guessed everyone had, really. Compared to the long skirts she’d used to wear, the skin-tight pants she wore now were almost sinfully form revealing.

All of this was enough to make Zoro’s mouth go dry, but the delighted grin that broke across her face at the sight of him nearly made his heart stop in his chest. She was so beautiful, and seeing her alive and well and _happy_ lifted a burden he hadn’t realized he’d been carrying.

“Kittyyy!!” Sanji leapt across the deck, his face lit up with heart eyes. “You look absolutely radiant as ever, as lovely as a sunset at sea-”

“Oh shut the hell up,” Zoro growled, stalking over. “You’re being fucking obnoxious.”

“Oh yeah?” Sanji’s face soured as he turned to face him. “I think you’re jealous because you don’t know how to treat a lady like I do.”

Zoro leaned in close, scowling. “You wanna bet?”

“Oookay,” Kitty said, stepping between the two of them. Zoro froze as her hand brushed his chest. “It’s a little too early to wreck the Sunny in a squabble, don’t you think? I’m pretty sure we have places to be. Like, away from the navy ships that are on their way to stop us?”

“Uhh, guys?” Usopp pointed out into the sea, where sure enough, three navy warships were on their way. “We should probably do like she says, and skedaddle.”

Franky inflated the bubble coating around the ship until the entire ship was engulfed in the giant bubble. The sails were spread, and the ship sank below the waves with a rush of water and bubbles, away from the pursuing navy. “Set sail! We’re off to Fishman Island!” Luffy hollered. The whole crew cheered; after two long, arduous years, they were finally together again, and off on what was sure to be another harebrained adventure. The Straw Hat crew wouldn’t have it any other way.


	12. Quiet

Just like Kitty had expected, they were given no time to relax. They’d barely descended a couple thousand feet below the waves before they were attacked, and things didn’t slow down the entire time – not while they finished descending, and not while they were on Fishman Island. It was wonderful to see Camie again, which was an upside. That, and the entire crew took this as an opportunity to show off their new skills they’d picked up over the last two years. Kitty, in particular, had picked up a proficiency in observation Haki, using it to slip past enemies’ defenses before electrocuting them.

While Luffy fought Hordy, the shark fishman who sought to destroy Fishman Island in some ill-conceived scheme, Kitty was brought to tears by one moment – Luffy unveiled a new attack, Red Hawk. She didn’t know how he did it, but his Haki-enforced arm flickered with red hot flame. He didn’t have to say it, but she knew – it was Ace’s fire, preserved in an attack developed in his memory. Zoro shot her a calculating look as she wiped the tears away, but she didn’t explain. She couldn’t, not yet.

The celebratory party had been fun, with lots of drinking and food and music, but to be honest Kitty was very glad when they finally were ready to set sail. The bubble coating on the Sunny had been redone, and the ship stocked with provisions. As usual, Zoro and Sanji were bickering. After such a long series of fights, it was heartwarming to have such a sense of normalcy.

“Yeah, that’s a good idea,” Zoro was saying. “Why don’t you stay here forever, _Nosebleed-kun_?”

“What the hell did you just call me, moss head!?”

“Who are you calling moss head, you idiot!?”

Perched far up on the uppermost rail, Kitty laughed aloud at the exchange. She saw Zoro shoot her a glance, and she could’ve sworn a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

At long last, Luffy called for the sail to be spread. The crew scrambled into action, and waved a final goodbye to Fishman Island before finally setting sail. It had been fun, but Kitty couldn’t wait to breathe real, fresh air once more.

Despite everyone’s desire to reach the New World, everybody was glad that the ascension would take nearly a full day, barring any bullshit that Luffy or any enemy could cause. The whole crew took the opportunity to get some well-earned rest, catching up on the sleep they’d missed between fighting and partying.

It was the middle of the night when Kitty jerked awake, panting and sweating. She rubbed her hands over her face, trying to pull herself out of her half-asleep state. It wasn’t the first time in the last couple years that she’d woken from nightmares of Ace, punched through the heart and bleeding out in front of her. It didn’t seem to get any easier as time passed, though.

Kitty slid out of her hammock as quietly as possible. Neither Nami nor Robin had awoken, and she tiptoed past them and out the door.

This deep under the sea, it was as dark as the middle of the night and twice as quiet. Kitty rubbed away the goosebumps that the chill air raised on her arms, and climbed up into her usual hiding spot in the crow’s nest. The ship didn’t rock like it would on the surface, but the dark and quiet were soothing enough as she took up her spot on one of the cushioned benches, wrapping her blanket around her shoulders. She leaned her head against the cold glass of the windowpane, idly watching the fish swimming past.

“Hey.”

Kitty jumped, whirling around. Zoro stood there, arms crossed and watching her warily. “You scared the hell out of me,” she scolded. “What are you doing sneaking up on people like that? You’re gonna make my hair go gray early.”

Zoro ignored her halfhearted reprimand and sat next to her. Even in the dim lighting, she could see he looked serious. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

Kitty blinked. “Nothing.”

“You’re still transparent as ever. I can tell something’s been bothering you this entire time. Did you have a nightmare or something?”

She scoffed, but had to look away from his gaze. “Guess I haven’t become a good liar yet,” she said. “Yeah, you got me. I came up here to clear my head. How’d you even know I was up here, anyway?”

“I was up to take a piss, and on my way back I saw you heading up here. I figured I’d see what was up,” Zoro explained. She rolled her eyes at the crassness, but she was touched all the same.

“Well, I’m fine.”

“Was it about Ace?”

Kitty froze. “How did you know that?” she demanded, finally turning to face him again. His face was serious, but she could see the softness of concern there, in the creases around his eyes.

“He used to be your captain, didn’t he? From what Luffy and you have told us, and from what I saw in Alabasta, he was a good guy. Knowing you, I’d be surprised if his death _didn’t_ affect you.”

Kitty’s shoulders dropped in defeat. “I watched the battle at Marineford on a video transponder snail. I saw everything. Including…when Ace died.”

“Shit, I’m sorry.”

Kitty shook her head. “I’ve had time to process it,” she said, drawing her knees close to her chest. “It’s not so raw anymore, but it still hurts sometimes.”

Zoro nodded. “Loss of someone you love hurts for a long time, and can come back when you least expect it,” he said somberly. She looked up at him; from the expression on his face, she suspected he was speaking from experience. “You can think you’ve moved on, but you can have a nightmare years down the road that sends you running out of your bed; a single word or scent can bring up memories that hurt like hell, no matter how long has passed. All you can do is handle it as it comes.”

Kitty nodded, scrubbing away the tears that pricked at her eyes. “You’re right,” she sniffled. “It doesn’t make it any easier, though.”

“I know.”

“…I never told any of the rest of you this, but Ace wasn’t just my captain.” She didn’t know why she was suddenly confessing this, but it felt right for Zoro to know. “We were…very close.”

“You mean you were lovers?” Kitty felt a faint blush bloom in her cheeks at his bluntness, but nodded anyways. Of all the people to confess this to- Zoro laughed a bit. “I already knew that.”

“What, seriously?”

“Yeah. Like I said, you’re transparent. I could tell from how you and he acted in Alabasta that there was more going on than just a reunion between a captain and his vice-captain,” Zoro explained.

Kitty blinked rapidly. Of all the people to pick up on something she’d kept quiet about, she wouldn’t have expected it to be Zoro. “And you never mentioned it to anybody else?”

“You didn’t bring it up, so I figured you didn’t want it to be public knowledge. I know how private you tend to be about matters close to the heart.”

She smiled softly. “I appreciate it.”

Zoro nodded in response. They were quiet for a long time then, not needing words to fill the comfortable silence. She probably wouldn’t have admitted it in so many words, but she always appreciated how Zoro never felt the need to fill the silence with idle chatter. Sometimes, it was better to be quiet.

“You can go back to bed if you want, I don’t want to keep you up,” she said after a bit, turning away.

“Do you _want_ me to leave?”

She squinted a bit. “Does it matter what I want?”

“Of course it does,” Zoro said. “You look like hell right now. If you need a shoulder to cry on, or just some company, I’ll stay. If you’d prefer to be alone, I’ll leave.”

Kitty hesitated. She knew what she wanted, but… “I want you to stay, but I don’t want to impose on you.”

“If it were imposing, I wouldn’t have offered.” Zoro gave a crooked smile, which she returned weakly.

If anybody else had been around, she probably wouldn’t have dared to do so, but in the quiet solitude offered by the middle of the night, Kitty moved over right next to him and curled up against Zoro’s chest. She felt him stiffen in surprise before he relaxed once more. His arm wound around her, tightening as she sniffled again. “Thank you,” she mumbled, feeling yet more tears spill over. She felt him shift a bit and press a light kiss against the top of her head.

“That’s what I’m here for,” he replied.


	13. Rising

Zoro was woken by the sound of someone climbing up the ladder to the crow’s nest. He cracked his one eye open and squinted against the bright sunlight filtering in through the window. Sunlight – they must be finally approaching the surface. Something soft tickled his cheek, and he looked down to find Kitty still snuggled up against his chest, fast asleep. It took him a moment to process and remember how they’d gotten here.

That, however, wasn’t the most pressing matter. Before he could move the two of them to a less incriminating position, Nami’s head poked up from the trapdoor. She looked surprised to see Zoro and Kitty cuddled up together, but her lips curled in a knowing smirk. “Well, well,” she said, “I was wondering where you two had gone off to.”

“Shut up,” Zoro hissed. He felt his face turning bright red, embarrassing him further. “Be quiet. You’ll wake her up.”

“Fine, fine. I was just coming up here to let you know we’ll be at the surface in a couple of hours,” Nami said, a laugh in her voice. If Zoro’s glare could cut like his swords, the redhead would’ve been dead then and there. “It’ll probably be rough once we arrive, so get ready. Anything can happen. Try not to let Sanji see you two.” With a wink, she dropped out of sight. Zoro sighed, leaning his head back against the windowpane. Kitty sighed and murmured in her sleep, her breath warm against his neck and chest. Without thinking, his hand stroked her soft hair, brushing it away from her face. Despite her mask of a care-free smile, he knew her well enough to know that Ace’s death had been weighing heavily on her heart, even years later. Now, asleep in his arms, she finally looked truly relaxed.

As if she could feel his stare, Kitty stirred and opened her eyes. She blinked blearily, and her ocean-green eyes met his as she processed where she was. “Oh,” she said, pulling away from him. It felt cold without her right against his side. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you.”

“It’s fine,” he assured her. “I don’t mind.”

Kitty rolled her neck, grunting in satisfaction at the _crack_ it made. “Oh, it’s sunny again, we must be near the surface.”

“Yeah, Nami came up here and told me that.”

“What!? Nami saw me asleep on you!?” Kitty exclaimed, an embarrassed flush creeping up on her face. “Oh my god, she’s gonna think we were up to something-”

“No, she won’t,” Zoro reassured her. She was so cute when she got flustered. “It’ll be fine, Nami isn’t the type to jump to conclusions.”

Kitty took a breath. “You’re right. Of course you’re right.” She shook her head. “Do you think Sanji has breakfast ready yet? I’m starving.”

“Let’s go see.”

“Oh, but what will they think if they see us coming down the ladder together?” she worried.

“Who cares?” he said. “It’s none of their business.”

Kitty smiled. “I knew there was a reason I liked you,” she teased. Zoro’s answering smile was radiant.

\---

She wasn’t sure what she was expecting from the New World, exactly, but the first island they came across was every bit as wild as the stories had led her to expect. Punk Hazard appeared to be on fire, as did the sea in the immediate vicinity. Luffy had been delighted at the sight of an erupting volcano, to the entire crew’s incredulity, and all but demanded to go to the island. When they’d received the emergency signal from it, there wasn’t much choice left.

They’d drawn straws, and soon Luffy, Usopp, Robin, Zoro, and Kitty set out in the Mini-Merry. Kitty had ditched her sleeveless leather coat in favor of just the loose shirt underneath, since even this far away, the heat was close to stifling.

The Mini-Merry was really only suited for four people, but since Zoro had insisted upon going as well, it was very cramped. Kitty tried to squish herself down between Zoro and the side of the boat, but he was having none of that. “Just sit on my lap,” he said, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her over. “It’s not a big deal.”

Kitty sputtered and tried to come up with an excuse otherwise while Robin laughed. In the front seat, Luffy and Usopp didn’t even seem to notice while the latter explained that his “fear-of-unknown-islands-osis” was having a relapse.

They weren’t on the island for very long before they were all drenched in sweat. Kitty eyed Zoro and Luffy with envy, as they both were able to quickly strip down to just their pants. The pants she wore, while durable and sensible, were not suited for such hot weather. She rolled up the hems to the knees, as high as she could, and after a moment’s hesitation stripped off her shirt, leaving just her bra.

“Hey, uh, Kitty? Whatcha doin?” Usopp’s voice was very carefully polite, but she could tell he was flustered. Luffy and Robin seemed disinterested completely, but Zoro appeared to be looking everywhere but at her. The rosy tinge to his cheeks could be because of the heat, but something told her it wasn’t. Interesting.

“In case you haven’t noticed, it’s freaking hot here,” Kitty replied. She tied the sleeves of her shirt around her waist. “I’m not gonna get heatstroke just because of gender expectations.” Behind her, Zoro barked with laughter.

\---

The appearance of a dragon had drawn mixed reactions from the landing party, ranging from Usopp’s terror, to Kitty’s delight, to Luffy’s absolute ecstasy. Kitty almost reminded Luffy to _not_ invite it to join the crew, but she didn’t want to put the idea into his head.

Zoro seemed nearly as excited to fight a dragon as Luffy. “Come on!” he shouted at the giant lizard, drawing two of his swords with a feral grin. Kitty drew one of her two swords with her right hand, and with her left pulled out a long, thin chain from her bag. She caught Zoro’s eye, and matched his grin with a fierce one of her own. The dragon snarled and charged at them. Luffy, Kitty, Usopp, and Robin all leapt out of the way, opting to let Zoro take the brunt of the attack.

“I sense your presence,” a disembodied voice said.

Kitty swiveled her head, looking for the source of the voice. There was nobody else around, so perhaps it _did_ come from the dragon like Luffy had claimed earlier. It charged Zoro again, clashing teeth against blade and pushing even his limits. She could see every muscle in his body straining to hold his ground. While it was distracted, Kitty whipped the chain around and flung it at the beast’s back, smiling in satisfaction as it wrapped securely around one of its spines. The moment it was secure, she pumped the thin but surprisingly sturdy chain full of lightning.

Pink arcs flickered down the links, and the dragon stiffened as the electricity ravaged its body, giving Zoro the opening he needed to press his own attack. The dragon’s wings flared out as it spasmed, throwing her off balance and making her cease the electrocution. The moment it was free, the dragon buffeted its mighty wings and forced its weighty bulk to rise high into the air – dragging Kitty up along with it. She swore to herself, but started climbing up the chain anyway. Just a change of plan, nothing she couldn’t handle.

\---

Far below the beast, the other four Straw Hats stared in wonder as the dragon seemed to speak again, this time asking if they were allies to “the Warlord”. They scattered as the dragon rained massive fireballs down upon them, hiding wherever they could find shelter.

Luffy and Zoro found themselves crouched behind a stone wall, each dripping sweat and breathing heavily. “Luffy, leave him up to me,” Zoro managed to grind out, drawing all three swords once more. “I’ll cut him up this time for sure.”

“Isn’t Kitty up there?” Luffy pointed out. “I’m not worried you’ll cut her, but this dragon is actually pretty tough.”

“You must’ve not seen her fight at Fishman Island,” Zoro said confidently. “She’ll be fine.”

Luffy shrugged. “Alright, in that case…”

\---

Kitty looked up as someone slammed down onto the dragon’s meaty neck beside her. Luffy skidded a bit across the scaled surface before getting a grip, and shot her a wide smile. “Hey!” he shouted over the wind. “Is this cool or what!?”

“Luffy! There’s something you need to see!” Kitty pointed towards the back of the dragon’s head with her free hand. She’d been about to stab into the monster with her sword and pump it full of electricity to try and ground it, until she’d spotted the thing she pointed out – a pair of hairy legs with wooden clogs protruding from the base of the beast’s skull.

With Kitty and Luffy both on the dragon’s back, it was child’s play to get it headed towards the ground once more. She could see Zoro propel himself high into the air with the help of one of Usopp’s bouncy plant things, and he decapitated the dragon as if it were made of wet paper. Kitty wasn’t too worried about the fact that they were falling – she happened to be right above the Trampolia that Zoro had used – until Luffy bumped into her and sent her flying way off course.

“Luffy, you moron!” Kitty shouted, twisting midair to try and correct her trajectory. It was no use; the ground was rising too fast. Without thinking about why, her gaze was drawn to Zoro. His one eye was intent on her, and he reached out a hand. She knew without any words what his plan was. Just like she’d done to the dragon, she flung the chain at him, and he caught it easily and jerked her towards him. They collided in midair, just in time to land on the Trampolia and bounce harmlessly to the safety of solid ground.

Zoro grinned down at her, arm still wrapped securely around her waist. “Now _that_ was pretty damn cool.”


	14. Complement

Punk Hazard had ended up being equal amounts hilarious and dark, just like it was equal parts hot and cold. The news of Ceasar experimenting on children had been chilling, but the mood was lightened considerably by the continuing series of faces of deep regret the warlord Trafalgar Law ended up pulling after cementing his alliance with Luffy. Kitty burst out into uncontrolled laughter at the expression on Law’s face as Luffy tied Chopper to his poofy hat.

“If it makes you feel better,” she’d said to him, patting his shoulder comfortingly, “this is how Luffy always is.”

“That doesn’t help _at all_ ,” Law had answered, his voice strangled.

Ceasar was a difficult enemy to beat, that was for sure. The whole adventure was only complicated by the arrival of cronies from the black market smuggler, Joker – Donquixote Doflamingo. However, like usual, they managed to pull through; the Straw Hats, Law, the children, and the G5 navy force. Goodbyes were said, and the pirates and marines went their separate ways.

Dressrosa was a short trip, so they only had about a day before they made landfall again. After splitting into the “factory destruction” team, the “Sunny protection” team, and the “Ceasar handover” team, the first group (comprised of Franky, Luffy, Zoro, Kitty, Sanji, and Kin’emon) headed into town. It was every bit as strange as what Kitty had come to expect from the New World, what with the living toys everywhere, but it was beautiful too; the food and music was incredible, and the architecture was colorful but not overbearing.

Kin’emon disguised them all with his Devil Fruit power – dress suits, mustaches, and sunglasses for the men (aside from Luffy, who wore a Hawaiian shirt of all things) and for her, a ruffled pink and lavender dress. Kitty gingerly touched her hair, which had been curled as well via his power.

“Is this acceptable to you?” Kin’emon asked her. “I don’t know what style of dress you prefer, but I thought this would look good on you.”

“It’s just fine,” she answered with a quick smile. “I really like it.”

Zoro silently agreed. The dress fit her perfectly – as did all of their disguises – but it was cut in an incredibly flattering way. The ruffles swayed as she moved, but before he could turn away, Kitty turned and caught him staring.

“What is it?” she said, looking self-conscious.

“I’ve never seen you in a dress before.”

“I used to wear skirts all the time,” she pointed out. “How is this different?”

Zoro wished his fake mustache covered more of his face as he felt his face heat up a bit. “It just is,” he said brusquely.

“Well, if that’s the case, I’ve never seen _you_ in a suit,” she said, stepping close and prodding the lapel of the jacket. “Though it appears to be missing something.”

“Oh?”

Kitty turned and plucked a pink rose from the nearest rosebush (of which there were _so many_ ), and tucked it into his pocket. “There,” she said. “Now you look good enough to eat.” It took a moment, but she seemed to realize what she’d said as what was visible of Zoro’s face turned red, and her cheeks did the same. _So cute_.

Behind them, Franky gave a subtle cough. Kitty and Zoro jumped, pulling away from how close they’d gotten together. The cyborg shot them a long-suffering look before he turned back to Luffy, mentioning something about getting some food before they actually set out on their business. Kitty barely heard Luffy’s enthusiastic reply over her own embarrassment.

As they made their way through the bustling streets, Kitty paused at a store display. “What is it?” Luffy asked, noticing.

“You all go ahead, I want to go in and look at something,” she said, gesturing at the clothing shop. “I’ll catch up with you all in a bit.”

“You should stay with one person, at least,” Sanji offered. “I’d be more than happy to-”

“Actually, Zoro should go with her,” Franky interrupted. “Kitty is the one best able to keep him from getting lost, and if anything happens we know she’ll be safe.” Zoro scowled at the implied insult, but followed Kitty into the shop anyway, not only because Sanji looked incensed at the idea of Zoro and Kitty being alone together.

“What is it you’re wanting to buy in here, anyway?” he asked.

Kitty’s expression turned somber, and she didn’t meet his stare as she glanced over the racks of clothes. “I want some gloves,” she said quietly. “To cover my scar.”

Zoro’s attention turned to her left hand, which was covered in strange branching red scars from her fingertips nearly up to her elbow. She’d gotten it at some point during their two year separation, but had yet to explain what had caused it. But from how she usually kept it tucked away, doing her best not to draw attention to it, it was easy to see that she was self-conscious about it. This was just confirmation.

“Why?” he said, stepping close. “What’s wrong with a scar?”

“There’s nothing wrong with _scars_ ,” she said, glancing at the one that covered his left eye. Of all people, of course Zoro would be fine with scars. He sure had enough of them, literally from his head to his feet. “I just don’t like this one.”

“Why? It’s beautiful.” Zoro took her hand and lifted it, admiring the zig zag lines. “It looks like something you’d find in an art museum.”

A deep blush rose in Kitty’s cheeks, but she stood frozen, turquoise eyes wide and fixed on Zoro’s face. She was torn between being surprised at how smooth he could be seemingly without even realizing, and _oh my god he’s touching my hand._

Her heart swelled as she considered his words. Zoro wasn’t a liar by any stretch of the imagination, and he had no patience for insincere flattery or the like. The man had no filter, and was blunt to the point of being rude sometimes. If he said her scar was beautiful, then he meant it. Kitty smiled softly, relaxing once more. “Thank you,” she said. She stepped close and stood on her tiptoes to press a chaste kiss against his cheek.

It was Zoro’s turn to blush and freeze, wide-eyed. He didn’t even have a chance to stammer out any words before Kitty pulled him out of the store by the hand that still held hers. As they took off after the others, Zoro wondered at what point he had become so wrapped around her little finger, and when he'd become completely fine with it.


	15. Control

There was _so much_ going on. To nobody’s surprise, circumstances had forced their group to separate. Sanji had disappeared off after some pretty dancer girl, and Zoro had charged off after some _thing_ that had stolen his sword. One of the living toys had claimed it was fairies, but Kitty just rolled her eyes as she took off after him, resolved to bring him back before he could get too lost. She’d found him, but she hadn’t expected to find an _actual_ fairy too.

Over the next several hours, much was revealed about the gilded apple that was Dressrosa – rich and beautiful on the surface, but rotted underneath to the core. The coliseum fight for Ace’s Devil Fruit, the truth about the living toys, the truth about how Doflamingo came into power, a race of dwarves enslaved for the creation of false Devil Fruits, the truth about the Donquixote family, the revelation that King Riku was still alive, the revelation that _Sabo_ was still alive, and more fights spread across Dressrosa than Kitty could keep track of. Not to mention the hellish Birdcage that Doflamingo had cast across the entire island, trapping them and causing utter chaos with his puppet string manipulation. It was _exhausting._

Kitty cheered as Zoro was finally able to defeat Pica, one of Doflamingo’s right hand men. It took a while to make her way through the rubble, but she finally found him, dirty and tired but triumphant. “Zoro!” she called. He looked up in time for Kitty to fling herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and holding him tightly. He stank of sweat and dust but she didn’t care.

Zoro sputtered in shock, and his face was a deep pink when she finally pulled back. He’d lost his sunglasses and mustache somewhere in the midst of all the chaos, but she was grateful to see the entirety of his handsome face again. “What was that for?” he demanded.

“I’m just so happy you’re alright,” Kitty explained.

“What, you didn’t think I could do it?”

“Just the opposite. I like being proved right.” She winked.

Zoro rolled his eye at her cheekiness, but they were interrupted by one of the coliseum fighters clearing his throat. “Uh, guys? We have trouble.”

The two of them finally separated, looking up in the direction the man pointed. Kitty’s blood ran cold as she saw what had drawn everyone’s attention – Donquixote Doflamingo himself was flying down towards them, pink feathered cape fluttering in the wind and that awful damned smile on his face.

“Shit,” Zoro breathed, drawing his swords. Kitty drew her swords as well – she’d long since abandoned her dress disguise in favor of her practical pants – and watched anxiously as the warlord landed lightly on the ground in front of them.

“Well well, isn’t this a disappointment,” Doflamingo mused, staring at the sliced body of Pica. “I expected more from one of my generals.” Despite his grin, Kitty could see at least three veins protruding from his forehead, throbbing furiously. He was _livid_ , and was going to take it out on them.

A bunch of the fighters around them charged Doflamingo at once, but he killed them all while barely lifting a finger. Kitty had seen him fight before, of course, but it never failed to chill her blood how easily and remorselessly the man could kill. Kitty had killed someone only once in a fight, on accident, and had had nightmares for months afterwards.

The warlord turned his sunglasses-shaded gaze towards Zoro. “I take it you’re the one who killed my general?”

Zoro stared the man down, his own stare cold enough to freeze oceans. “What’re you going to do about it?” he said quietly.

Kitty barely even saw Zoro move before Doflamingo blocked his attack; the two men flashed around the area, attacking and blocking faster than she could keep track. Deep rends appeared in the earth and the rubble around them crumbled to pieces under attacks sent awry by the other.

“As fun as this is,” the warlord said, sounding bored even as he and Zoro did their best to kill one another, “I can think of something better. You killed my family; time for you to kill _yours_.” Zoro started to demand what he meant, but a prick at the back of his neck and a horrible numbing sensation spreading through his body stopped him cold. Doflamingo gave that awful giggle of his, even as Zoro’s whole body trembled. “Time for some _fun_.”

Zoro slowly turned to face Kitty. His movements were jerky, but it was the expression of fury and _fear_ on his voice that made Kitty realize what had happened. “Shit. Zoro, don’t tell me you can’t shake that puppet string off,” she said, beating back the own fear rising in her chest.

“Go,” Zoro rasped. “Run _now_.”

“I’m not going to leave you-”

“RUN,” Zoro bellowed. Kitty didn’t even have time to flinch before Doflamingo twitched his fingers, and Zoro was launched towards her, blades glittering in the sunlight. She just managed to parry the blow before he was after her again, and again, never letting up. The entire time, she could see him fighting with all his strength against Doflamingo’s control. She could read it in the vein pulsing in his neck, the awkwardness of the attacks themselves, and in how the blades of the sword would twitch away at the last moment, leaving the flat or back of the blade for the actual blow. This puppet fighting wasn’t anywhere near Zoro’s real skill level, especially since he didn’t use his Haki, but it was still considerably more difficult than the times she and him had sparred.

Kitty fended off yet another attack, holding her ground as best as she could. “Fight it!” she shouted. “I know you can do it!”

Their blades shrilled and sang as they clashed again and again. Kitty’s arms trembled with fatigue against the heavy blows; such extended combat against such a strong opponent wasn’t normal for her. “Electrocute me,” Zoro demanded the next time they drew in close.

“No! I’m not going to hurt you,” she shot back. They separated again, only to clash once more during their next heartbeat. “I could kill you.”

“I trust you.” Just like he said, that was utter and complete trust in his stare, behind his frustration at his helplessness.

“That won’t work,” Doflamingo sang from his perch on a piece of rubble. “Even if the swordsman is unconscious or dies, I can still make him kill you.”

Kitty didn’t know if the man was lying, but she wasn’t going to take the chance. The minute Doflamingo pulled Zoro away, she leapt towards the warlord, already pumping her swords full of lightning. She had to kill him _now_ -

She barely heard Zoro shout a warning before an all-consuming ice cold agony bloomed in her middle. She looked down, and blinked in surprise at the end of a black blade protruding from the right side of her belly. Even as she watched, a blossom of red spread around it, staining her white shirt.

“KITTY! NO!!”

Her legs buckled underneath her, and the sword withdrew from her body as she fell to her knees, her own swords clattering to the ground. Doflamingo’s delighted laughter echoed in her ears. Zoro’s enraged and terrified bellow barely registered to her, but she saw the moment the warlord released his puppet control. Zoro flickered past her, moving faster than her sluggish brain could keep up with, and swiftly decapitated Doflamingo. The horrible laughing continued even as the blond head thudded to the ground, and some distant, fading part of her brain told her that this Doflamingo had been a copy, made of string and controlled by the real Doflamingo from afar.

Zoro was kneeling in front of her, his hands cupping her face as she swayed. His mouth moved but she couldn’t hear anything. Then she was being lifted. Zoro cradled her against his warm chest as if she were made of spun glass, and the slightest pressure would break her. Her head lolled as Kitty struggled to keep her eyes open, even as Zoro broke out into a run to who knows where. The suction pull of unconsciousness by blood loss turned out to be too powerful, however, and soon everything faded away.


	16. Heart

Zoro held his head in his hands, fighting off nausea. The rickety chair squeaked underneath him as he turned to glance for the hundredth time at Kitty, unconscious on the hospital bed and wrapped in more bandages than he’d ever seen her. The monitor next to them beeped steadily, reassuring him that she was _alive_ , though the paleness of her skin and the purple bruising under her eyes said otherwise.

He’d run through Dressrosa’s ruined streets, Kitty’s blood soaking his front, screaming for a doctor, a field medic, _anybody_ to help. His knees had almost buckled from relief when a man approached, offering to lead him to the nearest standing hospital.

The nurses had taken one look at Kitty, pale and bleeding freely, and had immediately whisked her away. Zoro had tried to follow, but they refused him.

“She needs blood,” he’d blurted out. He was stating the obvious, but he didn’t care. “She has type XF blood.”

Two nurses shot each other a look. “We’re almost out of that one,” one muttered.

“I have type XF! Take mine! Just save her,” Zoro demanded, shoving up his sleeve and thrusting his arm at them.

Now, six hours and one long, arduous surgery later, he’d finally been allowed in to see her. Kitty was thankfully asleep, and the doctor had said she would likely be asleep for a few more hours. Zoro had just nodded numbly, unable to tear his gaze from her pale face.

“If you don’t mind me asking, what’s your relationship to her?” the doctor had asked.

“I’m her crewmate,” Zoro said distantly. Deep in his heart, he felt a pang. It felt like he was lying, like he should be saying something more. Because as he was coming to realize, she definitely was more to him than just a crewmate.

However, seeing her there injured, by _his_ sword, at _his_ hand, he felt like he didn’t deserve to be there. Doflamingo had been defeated, the Birdcage vanished, and the people of Dressrosa saved. Luffy had won. But as Zoro sat next to his closest friend, his clothes still stained with her blood, he felt like he’d lost.

And he had. He couldn’t believe it had been so easy for Doflamingo to put him under that puppet control and turn him against Kitty. She’d vastly improved her swordplay, sure, but in the end she was the one who’d nearly died. All because Zoro had been unable to shake off that goddamn puppet string.

His eye dropped from her drawn face down to her left hand, set upon the covers. The red branching scars stood out starkly against the white sheets. Zoro reached out a shaking hand to grasp hers, but…he couldn’t. Not when this was his fault. He slammed his fist down on his knee, squeezing his eye shut. “Fuck!”

“I’m glad I finally found you two.”

Zoro twisted around to see Sanji standing in the doorway. His usual cigarette was nowhere to be found, likely confiscated by a nurse. “I’m not in the mood to deal with your shit, cook,” he growled, turning away again.

“I’m not here to give you shit. I heard Kitty was here and that she was hurt. I already called the rest of the crew, they’re on their way,” Sanji said, coming over. His expression turned somber at Kitty’s condition. “Damn, what happened to her?”

Zoro didn’t meet the cook’s stare. “Doflamingo.” It was true, but it felt again like he was lying. He knew full well that it hadn’t really been his actions that had led to Kitty being hurt, but that didn’t stop the guilt from eating him alive.

Sanji swore. “That bastard. I hope he rots in Impel Down. I heard Luffy gave him a hell of a beating. Not as much as that piece of shit deserves, but it’s better than nothing.”

Zoro didn’t answer. He could feel Sanji giving him a calculating stare. Normally it would have made him bristle and likely would’ve started an argument, but he didn’t have the energy. Not when he’d done this to Kitty.

“Hey marimo, what’s eating you?”

“Shut it,” Zoro growled. He wasn’t going to have a heart to heart with Sanji of all people, not only because the cook would kick his head in if he knew how badly off Kitty really was.

“Come on. I know you well enough to know when you’re actually upset,” Sanji said. “I know she’s your friend and you’re worried, but you’re being unusually touchy.”

Zoro shot him a warning glance, but the cook held his ground. After a long moment, his shoulders slumped. “Doflamingo used his puppet control powers,” he admitted in a low voice. “He made me attack her.”

Understanding filled Sanji’s eyes, and he exhaled slowly. “Shit,” he said quietly.

“I know.”

Zoro waited for the cook to fly into a rage, to berate him for being unable to protect her, to be furious with him over being the one to actually _hurt_ her. It’s what he deserved. Instead, all Sanji said was, “Hungry?”

“No.” Zoro shook his head. The thought of eating right now turned his stomach, even though it had been nearly a whole day now since his last meal. What he really needed was sleep, and lots of it. The events of the last day were finally starting to catch up to him, and every fiber in his body cried out for him to lay down and rest.

“I’m going down to the waiting room to wait for everyone else,” Sanji said. Zoro heard the uncharacteristically thoughtful hidden message – if he changed his mind on food, or if he needed him, he knew where to find him. He’d never admit it, but he was grateful to the cook for that.

It was another hour before the rest of their crew arrived, filling the room way past capacity in terms of bodies and noise. Zoro hovered close to Kitty the entire time, nearly snarling anytime her bed was bumped or someone (usually Luffy) got too close to her and invaded her personal space. It didn’t take long for the doctor to declare that there were entirely too many people in the room being entirely too loud, not even including Franky who couldn’t actually fit through the door. Everyone except Zoro headed back to the waiting room to grab some food and to rest. He sank back down into his chair, grateful for the peace and quiet as he resumed his vigil, waiting for Kitty to finally wake up.


	17. Confession

Kitty felt like she was swimming in quicksand, trying desperately to reach the surface. The more she struggled, the deeper she seemed to sink, struggling to move or to even breathe. She reached out her hand towards the distant light, far above her, where she could swear she heard a familiar voice, calling her name desperately.

 _I’m here_ , she tried to say. _Zoro, I’m here. Wait for me._

She rose up, up, up towards the light, and finally broke through. Kitty’s eyes snapped open and she sucked in a ragged breath, grimacing when shards of pain shot through her middle. “Ah, shit,” she groaned. As she moved her hand to cover her middle, a tugging sensation caught her attention, and she finally noticed the IV strapped to her hand. Her eyes followed the tube up to a bag of fluid up on a stand. She was in a hospital, she realized belatedly.

On her other side, her eyes fell upon Zoro, sound asleep in a chair right next to her bed. Her heart leapt into her throat at the sight of all the dried blood on his front, but since he wasn’t bandaged or stuck in a bed like she was, he was probably unhurt. She reached out and stroked his cheek, trailing her fingertips over the scar on his cheekbone. He stirred under her touch, his one eye blinking blearily before focusing on her. “Kitty!” he breathed. His hand gripped hers, keeping it against his cheek.

“Zoro,” she whispered. “Where are we?”

“A hospital.” Zoro scooted the chair as close as he could, leaning his elbows on the mattress. “They stitched you up, you’re going to be fine.”

Her hand absently touched her stomach, feeling the bandages binding her wound. She frowned as the memories resurfaced of exactly how she got injured. “Is Doflamingo…?”

“He’s not dead. Luffy beat him to hell and back, and the navy took him into custody.” As he spoke, his face grew serious, and she could see regret and shame in his expression. It didn’t take an expert to figure out what exactly was bothering him.

“Zoro, it wasn’t your fault,” she said softly. Despite her words, he pulled away, and her hand dropped back to the bed.

“I should’ve been able to stop it,” he growled. “If I’d been able to get free then I wouldn’t have…you wouldn’t…” Zoro stood abruptly, turning away to hide his expression. “I gotta get some air,” he said to nobody in particular. Before she could call him to come back, he’d disappeared out the door, leaving her alone.

Kitty leaned back against her pillow, sighing. It was hardly surprising that he felt guilty, but Zoro wasn’t stupid by any means. He should know better than to beat himself up over something like this. It wasn’t like she’d died, after all.

A knock on the door drew her attention, and she looked up to see Robin standing in the doorway. She gave a faint smile as she came in. “Do you mind some company?” she asked.

“Robin! Please, come sit down,” Kitty said, gesturing at the now empty chair.

“I just saw Zoro stalk past, and he looked quite upset. You two didn’t have a fight did you?” Robin asked.

Kitty shook her head. “No. I think he’s blaming himself for me getting hurt. He can be so bullheaded sometimes.”

Robin sat in the chair. “He’s just worried about you. The doctor said he was quite distraught when he brought you in, after all.”

“But I’m fine,” Kitty insisted. “A little worse for wear, and a little lighter in the blood department, but I’ll bounce back.”

“As true as I’m sure that is, that doesn’t seem to be helping your swordsman get over his anxieties.” Kitty flushed at ‘your swordsman’, and waved it off.

Outside the door, unseen by either woman, Zoro paused, listening in to the conversation. In one hand he held a small vase of flowers he’d picked up at the shop downstairs. “He’s not _my_ swordsman,” he heard Kitty say. His eyebrows shot up – she and Robin were talking about him? “Technically, he’s everyone’s swordsman.”

“Do you really think he loves the rest of the crew the way he loves you?”

Zoro froze. He heard Kitty choke and sputter. “Excuse me?” she said. “Zoro doesn’t love me. Not any different than how he does everyone else.”

“ _Kitty_.” Robin’s voice was amused but stern. “Use your eyes. He might not have realized how _you_ feel about him, but the rest of us have endured every longing stare and lingering touch you two have done for the past two and a half years. _Please_ just confess to each other already.”

Outside the door, Zoro could’ve sworn he’d burst into flames if his face turned any redder. _Shit. Fuck. They all_ knew!? “He- you- _what_??” Kitty demanded. “I think you’re seeing things.” Except for Kitty herself, apparently.

“Talk to Zoro, clear the air.” Zoro heard the sound of a chair scraping back, but before he could compose himself and hide, Robin was coming out the door. She turned and stared him in the eye with a look that clearly said she’d intended for him to hear all of that. With a knowing smile, she turned away and headed down the hallway, towards the elevator downstairs.

It took a second to gather himself and dare to peek inside Kitty’s room. She didn’t notice him; she’d covered her face with her hands, but he could see her ears were red with a blush. He had barely five seconds to decide whether he had the courage to go inside and face her when she took a deep breath and lowered her hands. Their eyes met across the room, and before he could stop himself he was moving across the room.

“Hey,” Kitty said softly.

“Hey.” Zoro set the vase of flowers down on her bedside table. God, he hated feeling so awkward. Sea kings? Warlords? No problem. Facing a possible “feelings” discussion with the woman he’d fallen for? Not so much. “How’re you feeling?”

“I’m just a little tired,” she answered. Zoro warily sat back in his chair. “Um, I talked to Robin just now,” she said. Her hands fiddled anxiously with the edge of the sheet. “She, uh…she told me something.”

“I know. I heard.”

Kitty finally met his gaze. When she spoke, her voice was so soft he had to strain to hear it. “And? Do you?”

A dozen different things went through his head that he could say, ranging from defensive to sappy, but none of it felt right. With her waiting there, those stunning ocean green eyes fixed on him, he realized he didn’t need to say anything overly special. “I do,” he said simply.

Kitty gaped at him. His admission had shocked her to her core, and she didn’t have words for the emotions coursing through her. He _loved_ her, and had freely admitted it. It was obvious he cared about her, but he cared about their whole crew. Kitty loved him of course, and had known for a while now, but had never dreamed that he reciprocated. It was almost more than her heart could handle.

“Are you gonna say anything?” Zoro said, raising an eyebrow. Kitty sputtered a little, her face reddening.

“Like what?”

“Like if you return it.”

“Well of course I do!” Kitty bust out before she could stop herself. “I-I mean. Can’t you tell?” The two of them stared at each other, both red in the face, before Zoro burst into laughter. Kitty frowned. “What’s so funny?”

“This whole situation,” he chuckled, gesturing between them. “If you’ve been dancing around this as long as I have, can you imagine just how frustrated everyone must’ve been with us?”

Kitty finally laughed a bit too. “I imagine that’s why Robin did this,” she sighed. “How embarrassing.”

Zoro hesitantly reached out and took her hand in his, rubbing his thumb over the raised zigzag scars. “It’ll be fine,” he assured her. “I promise. Do you want me to stick around? Or should I get that stupid cook to bring you some food?”

Kitty tightened her grip on his hand, anchoring him to her. “Don’t you dare leave now,” she teased.

He raised her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”


	18. Closer

The doctor had originally told them that she’d need to not get out of bed for at least two weeks, depending on her recovery time.  Thankfully, though, once Law had recovered some of his strength, he paid her a visit and undid a lot of the damage that Zoro’s sword had done. “You still need to take it easy for a while,” he advised her. “And I wouldn’t recommend any strenuous activity for a week more, just in case. I can do a lot, but it’s not an instant cure.”

“I understand,” she said. Behind them, Zoro’s hand rested lightly on her lower back, and his thumb gave a comforting stroke against her skin.

“See, Kitty? I told you Tra-guy could fix you up!” Luffy slung his arm over Law’s shoulder, beaming widely. Law’s expression soured even further, and Kitty had to bite back a giggle.

“Hey Luffy? Can I talk to you for a minute?” she asked, partly because she actually needed to talk to him, and partly to save Law from Luffy’s rather aggressive brand of friendship. From the look the doctor shot her, he understood and was grateful.

“Yeah!” Luffy finally released Law, who all but ran out of the room, trying and failing to look subtle about it.

“I’ll be waiting outside,” Zoro said quietly in her ear. Everyone filed out of the room, leaving her alone with Luffy, who unsubtly munched on her plate of food.

“Luffy…did you really see Sabo?” she asked quietly.

Her captain paused mid-bite. “Yeah, I did.”

“Incredible,” Kitty breathed. “Ace told me so much about him. I can’t believe after so long, he was actually alive.”

“Yeah, I was surprised too.” Luffy smiled happily, and she could see a sheen of tears in his eyes. “He’s alive! And a revolutionary! Of course he’d go stirring up trouble.”

“That’s all you brothers ever seem to do,” she teased. She wiped a tear of her own. “Ace would be so overjoyed if he were here.”

Luffy looked at her closely. “You really loved him, didn’t you?”

Kitty blinked in surprise; it was a little out of character for Luffy to be so observant, but it wasn’t like he was stupid after all. She nodded. “Yeah, I really did,” she said softly. “I miss him.”

Luffy clapped a hand on her shoulder with a smile. “I do too. You remember what I said after Alabasta, right? When you joined my crew?”

“’I’ll protect you in Ace’s stead’,” she echoed, remembering the moment. “You said Ace would beat the hell out of you if you let something happen to me.”

“Yeah. I meant it. I’ll keep that promise until I die.”

“Thanks, Captain.”

“Not to interrupt,” Nami said from the doorway, “but we need to get going. It looks like the Navy has finally decided to make a move on us.”

“Alright!” Luffy grabbed Kitty’s hand and all but dragged her from the hospital room, ignoring her protests as she hastily pulled out the IV before it could be ripped away.

The flight from Admiral Fujitora was long and strenuous, and despite how cool it was to watch Luffy go head to head with an admiral again, Kitty was grateful when they finally got far enough away to relax. After all that fighting and stress and pain, it was so wonderful to be reunited with most of her crew, and to see the bonds that Luffy had apparently forged with these dozens of burly, deadly looking pirates who all but begged him to become their Grand Captain.

Luffy’s blatant refusal and his declaration “I need my space!” made her absolutely lose her shit, laughing until she wheezed and clutched at her aching, still-healing wound. Zoro rolled his eye, and though he didn’t say anything she knew he was silently calling her a moron. Even more hilarious was the pirates ignoring Luffy’s refusal, and swearing themselves to him anyway.

The partying and feasting lasted several hours, taking a long time for everyone to wind down. Kitty managed to get a nice alcohol buzz going, and was lounging against the railing when Zoro plopped down next to her. “Hungry?” he asked, offering her a plate with more food.

“Nah, if I eat one more bite, I’ll pop. We can’t all have rubber stomachs.” Kitty and Zoro shared a laugh. Everyone had finally changed out of the disguises that Kin’emon had given them and changed into clean, untorn clothes. As glad as Kitty was to see Zoro’s bloodstained clothes gone, she’d been disappointed to see the end of the suit until he’d put on a similar white dress shirt. Of course, he left it unbuttoned, which she also appreciated. She loved just about every outfit he wore, but this in particular suited him very well. She leaned over against him, the collar of his shirt rubbing against her cheek as she did so. “It’s good to finally be able to relax again.”

“I agree.” His arm wound around her, holding her close. He still treated her as if she were made of glass, which was equally endearing and annoying. “But I’m mostly happy to see you’re alright.”

“I told you I would be. Even controlled by Doflamingo, you could never hurt me.” Kitty pressed a kiss against Zoro’s jaw. His gaze softened as he looked down at her.

They’d drawn very close to one another, barely a breath of air between them, but a loud _thud_ interrupted them. Luffy had stuffed himself so full of food that he’d swelled up to the size of a boulder and fallen over, cracking the deck boards. Everyone roared with laughter as he struggled to sit upright.

Kitty’s giggles were interrupted by a lingering yawn. Zoro noticed, and before she could protest otherwise, he’d scooped her up in his arms and was carrying her inside. “Hey!” she protested. “I can walk you know-”

“You’re still recovering. Plus you’re drunk. You’ve never been able to hold your liquor.” Zoro headed towards one of the multiple guest rooms that had been set up for the visiting pirates, and laid her on the bed. “Get some rest, you need it.” He leaned down and pressed a kiss against her forehead before turning to leave.

“Wait.” Kitty reached out and caught his wrist. “Please stay.”

Zoro chuckled, and shut the door behind them before kicking off his boots. “You sure are clingy, you know that?”

“I know, I just…it’s the first time in a while we’ve been actually alone. I want to enjoy it,” she said. She tugged at him until he gave in and laid down next to her. It warmed her heart to see him so calm and relaxed, especially since he was choosing to let his guard down around _her_. “You know, we were kind of interrupted earlier, but it looked like you were going to kiss me there for a second.”

“You’re an observant woman. I assume you’d be alright with that?” Zoro said, his expression teasing.

“I don’t know. Maybe you should try it to find out,” Kitty teased back.

“Hmm.” Zoro’s hand trailed up her side, leaving a trail of goosebumps in his wake. “An interesting suggestion. You’re so smart.” He leaned in and brushed her hair away from her face, before carefully, _finally_ , sealing his lips over her own.

His mouth was so warm on hers. Kitty pulled him closer and he instantly obliged. She ran her fingers through his hair, marveling at how soft it was. Zoro’s hands gripped her waist, keeping her pinned securely against him. They fit together like two pieces of a puzzle, as if they’d been made for one another. Kitty caught his lower lip between her teeth, drawing a surprised but pleased sound from him.

Zoro only pulled away when she started tugging at his shirt. “Kitty,” he panted. “You’re _injured_.”

“I’m _fine_.” Kitty slid her hands down his front, admiring the carved muscle there before her fingers tugged at his pants.

He caught her hands, pinning them safely away from his pants, where she could feel his arousal pressing against her hip. “I’m not going to risk aggravating your wound,” he said firmly. “It’s only been one day. As soon as you’re fully healed, if you still up for it, I’ll be happy to break some headboards with you. Until then, we’re going to do like Law said and _take it easy_.”

Kitty grumbled until Zoro silenced her with a kiss. “I guess you’re right,” she grudgingly agreed. She snuggled up against him, and his arms wrapped securely around her. “Will you at least stay here with me tonight?”

Zoro kissed her forehead before pulling the blanket up over them both. “All you ever have to do is ask.”


	19. Memories

In the end, Kitty ended up being glad that she and Zoro held off from sex. Her dreams, though not exactly nightmares, were filled with Ace, with his freckled skin and his laugh and the scent of his wavy hair when he was fresh out of a shower. Though it had been years since she’d been on his ship, she still woke up disoriented to find herself on a different ship, in someone else’s bed.

After a minute of controlled breathing, she finally managed to shake off most of the lingering guilt that ate at her. She knew, logically, that even if Ace were alive he would tell her to be with whoever made her happiest, or to not be with anybody at all if that’s what she wanted. He would never hold her attraction to Zoro against her. He probably wouldn’t be too happy, but he would accept it.

As wonderful as it had been to finally know that Zoro not only accepted her feelings, but he _returned_ them…it was smart to take it slow, like Zoro had said. Not only because she was still recovering from her injury, but because she was still recovering from the hole that Ace’s loss had left in her heart.

Kitty looked around the dim room, only just now realizing that Zoro was nowhere to be found. He was always an early riser, despite usually being up till god-awful hours of the morning, and was likely off training somewhere. That was good – like she’d decided, they’d take things slow. Some alone time was welcome, even necessary, at least until she recollected herself.

At least, that’s what she kept telling herself over the next week. Law had said there was no way to know how long it would take to reach Zou, as it wasn’t actually an island, but this trip was taking a lot longer than she’d expected. And her self-restraint was wearing thin.

At her request, Zoro stayed with her each night, still holding to his refusal to do anything strenuous with her – which in his mind likely meant training, but in hers made her wonder what sex with him must be like if he associated it with “strenuous”. They usually ended up kissing once they’d laid down for sleep, at least until things turned heated and Zoro would pull away, citing her injury and Law’s instruction to take it easy. Kitty could read him well enough to know it strained even his incredible self-control, and after a week of lingering touches and heated stares, she’d had enough. It was time to bite the bullet.

A week and two days after Law had fixed her up, she decided to take things into her own hands. The ship was unusually quiet that night, with only a handful of the night owls being awake. Kitty had showered and dried her hair until it was light and fluffy again, and pulled it up into a messy bun. That, and some carefully planned dressing, were all the weapons she’d need.

Zoro was lounging on the upper deck when she found him, staring up at the stars. “Hey,” she called. “Mind if I join you?”

“Go for it,” he answered. “I’ve got some booze if you want any-”

His words died on his lips as he finally looked over at her. Kitty gave him an innocent smile as his jaw slackened, and the pupil of his one eye widened with desire. “What is it?” she asked.

“Is that my shirt?” he demanded. “And why aren’t you wearing pants?”

“I have shorts on,” Kitty said defensively, lifting the bottom of the overly big shirt to show she was, in fact, wearing shorts. The fact that they barely covered the same surface area as her underwear wasn’t lost on either of them, if Zoro’s hungry stare was anything to judge by. “Is it okay for me to wear your shirt? It’s super comfortable, but I’ll give it back if you want.”

“No no, it’s fine,” Zoro said hastily, grabbing her hands to stop her lifting it off herself. She was bluffing, of course, and it did her ego good to see the dusting of a blush across his cheekbones. “It looks good on you.”

“Do you really think so?”

“ _Everything_ looks good on you.” Now it was Kitty’s turn to blush. “I mean it. Whether you’re in a skirt, or pants, or that pink dress, or even my worn out shirt, you look…fantastic.”

“Ah, now you’re just flattering me,” she said. This was backfiring. The plan had been to get Zoro aroused and flustered, not to have him shower her with compliments until she was a blushing, stuttering mess. She yawned – half staged, half sincere. It _was_ getting late, after all.

Zoro took the hint and stood, offering his hand to help her up. They made their way to their guest room, where they did their usual routine – brushing their teeth, setting their weapons and shoes aside, and dimming the lights. Kitty undid her bun and let her piles of wavy hair tumble down her back, releasing the fresh scent of the soap she’d used earlier. She could feel Zoro’s stare, but she deliberately pretended to not notice as she reached down and shimmied out of her shorts before climbing into bed.

When she finally met his stare, she felt like she could combust from the heat there. “Not that I’m complaining, but why did you strip down to your underwear?” he said, his voice surprisingly steady.

“More comfortable this way.” Kitty stretched languidly, relishing Zoro’s eye being fixed hungrily upon her naked thighs. “I’ll go put some sweatpants on if I’m making you uncomfortable.”

“No!” His hand latched onto her wrist, keeping her in place. “It’s fine.”

Kitty shrugged nonchalantly. “Alright, if you insist.” She leaned over him, her hair tumbling down around them, and pressed a teasingly chaste kiss against his lips. “Goodnight.”

With that, she turned and laid down, back to him. She could practically hear the gears turning in his head – thus far she’d always been eager to draw him into pre-sleep make outs, until the point that he had to put a stop to it because he was worried about her stomach injury. This change of pace, denying him, on top of the way she’d dressed – and then undressed – was driving him mad. After a week of clear signals, then pulling back the moment she was medically cleared, it was almost more than he could handle.

Zoro turned onto his side, wrapping his arms around Kitty and drawing her close into spooning. She wriggled in his grip as if trying to adjust and get comfortable, but he had to bite his lip as her ass ground against his crotch. She wasn’t stupid, she had to be able to feel just how turned on he was – how turned on he’d been since the moment she’d shown up in his clothes. With the scent of her hair thick in his nose, and her ass _still_ pressing up against him, he felt like he’d go insane if he didn’t have her right now.

Unable to resist any longer, he nuzzled into her neck, planting kisses from her shoulder all the way up to the shell of her ear. Kitty shuddered at the sensation, taking the opportunity to wriggle her ass back against him again. Zoro’s hands turned possessive, one hand brushing against her breasts through his shirt and the other reaching down to feel the warm skin of her bare legs. Zoro’s teeth grazed her neck at the same time as his hand delved between her thighs, drawing a breathy moan from her.

God, the sound of her moan turned him on even more. Zoro finally pulled away and flipped Kitty onto her back before lowering himself onto her. She immediately wrapped her legs around his waist and attacked him with kisses, dragging her fingers through his hair. His mouth trailed kisses and nibbles down her jaw until she tilted her head back, inviting him to kiss her neck, which he did so eagerly. Kitty gasped as he bit down.

“You good?” he mumbled against her throat.

“More,” she gasped. Zoro didn’t have to be told twice – he bit her again, hard, and she shuddered underneath him with a loud moan. He loved that sound so fucking much, even as her nails dragged down his back. Even through the shirt, he could tell it would leave marks. At the same time, they both seemed to realize they were still dressed, and they quickly pulled off each other’s clothes. Zoro paused while pulling his shirt off her, though, catching her attention. “What is it?” she panted.

“I was just remembering you in that pink frilly dress,” he murmured. “With the slit up to your thigh, and the low cut back. I wanted to rip it off you the second I saw it.”

“I thought you said you liked it?”

“Why do you think I wanted to rip it off you? Especially after you said I looked edible in my suit. You kept me distracted with the thought of you making good on that, and me returning the favor.” They shared a breathless laugh before kissing once more. Kitty still couldn’t believe she was here, kissing her closest friend, and it felt _so right_. He was hilarious, and honest, and kindhearted, and so unbelievably sexy. And right now, he was all hers.

Her train of thought was interrupted by Zoro’s mouth latching on to her finally exposed breasts, his tongue and teeth doing _interesting_ things to each nipple in turn. “Ah, shit, Zoro-”

“Don’t be too loud,” he murmured. “This place doesn’t seem to have thick walls.”

“You’re making it hard.”

“You make _me_ hard.”

“And they say romance is dead.”

They took it slow and easy, largely at Zoro’s insistence. Kitty muffled her moans in her hand until Zoro kissed her, hard, swallowing her whimpers and cries. It took them a while to find a pace that worked for both of them, and even then it was still messy and awkward, but practice makes perfect. And Kitty was definitely willing to practice.

It didn’t take them very long to reach their climaxes, shuddering and whispering each other’s names as they came. They lay there for a long time afterward, cuddled close together, stroking each other’s skin and sharing soft kisses. As they finally drifted off to sleep, Kitty thought once more about Ace, and all the adventures they’d shared. She smiled sleepily, content in the knowledge that if he could see her from wherever he was, he’d be happy that she’d found love and family once more.


End file.
